Reflection
When I first signed up for Field Work I had no idea what to expect. I figured that it was an almost mandatory community service that I needed to complete in order to graduate. I was very surprised to discover that we were being paired up with organizations and were collaborating with people outside of VMI.
For my project my partner, Joe, and me met up with the head of the organization, Project Horizon, in order to hypothesize what could be done in order to further the organization. In the same manner that I had never heard of Field Work, I had also never heard of Project Horizon. Sure, I had seen the posters in the hallway but like many I had never stopped to actually read one. On one hand this can be humorous because anyone who knows me know that I am not the most vigilant person around but on a more serious note this is a problem because for people who are actually in need of help, knowing that Project Horizon exists is very helpful in their recovery from domestic assault and sexual violence. After learning about Project Horizon in more detail, I became aware of how important it was to begin a website that could potentially one day spread out information to people who very quickly and simply wanted it. Joe and I began to collaborate with Kate, the head of the organization, in order to come up with a plan for the website that she had in mind.
Constructing the website was both easy and difficult. Joe knew all about the needed technology and how to secure the best graphics but the really hard part turned out to be the actual getting of the information, which surprised me. One would think that all four schools, VMI, SVU, Dabney, and W&L, would have quick and easy access to such information but that was not the case. Joe and I were told to wait and had to be pushy about information because for the most part it was not as readily available as I thought it should be. That is why when one goes to our website, the main goal was to create something that was fast and simple. People in need of information should not have to get stressed out looking for information especially when something traumatic may quite possibly what led them there to begin with. I
Another factor that I found to be difficult was the act of being independent. We always think that being told what to do is stressful but I learned that it is quite the opposite for me. It could be my personality or the fact that I go to a military school but being independent and having to create my own schedule did not come easy to me. I found out that I am incredibly unorganized and for the first time I was forced to have to deal with it in fear of letting down my partner, which I know I occasionally did. I think that was by far one of the greatest aspects of Field Work: the independence. For the first time I was not a student but a partner. Good or bad, I definitely learned from it.
Giving the presentation was by far more nerve racking that I expected it to be. I am generally a very confident person but I think having to display something that I helped to make made me both nervous and proud. Overall, I am very glad for my opportunity to participate with Project Horizon and Joe. Originally I was a little disappointed about the fact that it wasn’t as one on one as I had intended but I do not think that that takes away from my experience. Regardless of the grade I get in the class or the time that it took to do, I honestly believe that our website may one day truly help out someone in need. Its still in the making, there needs to be other steps that are taken before it is truly ready for mainstream use. However, I do feel that the potential is there and I hope that future students take what Joe and I did and further evolve it because there are many people out there that could truly benefit.
