As a part of the Capstone Scholars program, each student submits a completed personal challenge and community service requirement with reflections each semester.
I decided to go all in right away, and my first personal challenge was jumping out of a plane. I was afraid of that pitting feeling in my stomach and the lack of control of the unknown. What I didn’t know, is that I would actually enjoy the breathless sensation that lasted only a few seconds, and that skydiving would be the essence of my first year of college.
Presented here is a U101 journal entry written in May 2018.
I decided to go all in right away, and my first personal challenge was jumping out of a plane. I was afraid of that pitting feeling in my stomach and the lack of control of the unknown. What I didn’t know, is that I would actually enjoy the breathless sensation that lasted only a few seconds, and that skydiving would be the essence of my first year of college.
Presented here is a U101 journal entry written in May 2018.
This year went a lot like that moment
My very first year
Away from my home, full of fear
Falling fast
Headfirst into something unknown
So much all at once
Hitting me right in the face
Nothing to hold onto
So relying on grace
Hard to catch a breath
But letting it take my breath away
Knowing it was shaping me
And would mean something someday
Somewhere on the way down
I met the greatest people in my life
From Capstone and Patterson
Club volleyball kids, my fit fam, and my nursing team too
Mission trip, classes, and those I’d run into
Everyone I met
In a year that flew by
Meant something to me
And were like clouds in the sky
The moment
I tipped over the edge
And started my rapid descent
Was the moment I let myself be vulnerable
And nothing would ever come equivalent
My freshman year
As I try to hold back my tears
Will always feel like
The day I first fell out of the sky
I will hold onto it
And the next three years to come
As I’m sure, they too will fly by.
One of the classes at USC that supports students to explore new personal challenges is U101. USC freshmen are encouraged to take University 101, an introductory class that serves to help new students seek out resources and throw themselves into involvement within and outside the classroom. Over the semester, students are introduced to research, sports, clubs and professional organizations, and in the Capstone specific course, grants and networking within the Capstone program. My second personal challenge ultimately led to the job that changed my life. The challenge I set for myself was to apply and audition to join a “Fit Fam” and train to be a Certified Group Fitness Instructor at our University gym. Even though I already had a fiery passion for health and fitness, becoming a fitness instructor was never something that I thought I could do. Standing in front of dozens of participants while speaking in public, sweating, sometimes falling on your face, and being labeled as someone who is supposed to always have abs, was not on my to do list.
Luckily, I had the overwhelming support of all the instructors that trained me, and all my friends that let me test out my warm up moves on them. Week after week I was told to push myself and show 150% of my personality and effort, so that participants would show 90%. Halfway through my semester long training, I realized that this one personal challenge to even apply for the job, was connecting me to all students and faculty that came in the gym and revealing the real me, a passionate, enthusiastic gym junkie who wanted everyone to feel the positive benefits of exercise. Two years after writing down my goal to audition, I became the student advisor for the entire Group X Cycle program. I got the honor to add my own input into running the class formats and training new instructors.
My Certification is through the American Council on Exercise. After going through a three month training and studying on my own, I took the national exam in order to teach any age group at all basic formats. I complete continuous education credits every year and can use it to teach classes such as Bootcamp, HIIT FIT, Strength classes and other cardio based formats!
Along with my ACE Certification, I also hold specific certifications for TRX, which are suspension training bands, as well as Schwinn Cycle. My favorite class to teach is Cycle TRX hybrid class!
Along with my ACE Certification, I also hold specific certifications for TRX, which are suspension training bands, as well as Schwinn Cycle. My favorite class to teach is Cycle TRX hybrid class!
As a Junior Capstone Scholar, you no longer technically have to complete personal challenges, but I got use to looking forward to pushing myself and achieving something. I continued to develop semester personal challenges for myself, always ending up creating more connections and diving deeper into community involvement.
Keeping my heart and arms wide open, I dove into club volleyball, both indoor and sand and joined professional organizations like Alpha Epsilon Delta, AED. Having played competitive volleyball my whole life, joining the club travel team freshman served as a bridge and helped me meet girls who had similar passions as me. Junior year, I helped my roommate create the University’s first Club Beach Volleyball team. We gained recognition, built the foundation, ran practices, coordinated finances and travel. We met so many along the way and left the new club sport as part of our legacy at the University.
I joined AED, the professional organization for Pre Health students, to broaden my own professional opportunities working with various volunteer groups in Columbia and having opportunities to meet a wide range of health professionals in different medical fields. My time in AED was essential to my continued pursuit of Nursing, and also have me the opportunity to be apart of their Costa Rica Spring Break Mission Team in 2019 that was very similar to my experience in Nicaragua.
Keeping my heart and arms wide open, I dove into club volleyball, both indoor and sand and joined professional organizations like Alpha Epsilon Delta, AED. Having played competitive volleyball my whole life, joining the club travel team freshman served as a bridge and helped me meet girls who had similar passions as me. Junior year, I helped my roommate create the University’s first Club Beach Volleyball team. We gained recognition, built the foundation, ran practices, coordinated finances and travel. We met so many along the way and left the new club sport as part of our legacy at the University.
I joined AED, the professional organization for Pre Health students, to broaden my own professional opportunities working with various volunteer groups in Columbia and having opportunities to meet a wide range of health professionals in different medical fields. My time in AED was essential to my continued pursuit of Nursing, and also have me the opportunity to be apart of their Costa Rica Spring Break Mission Team in 2019 that was very similar to my experience in Nicaragua.
With every new organization or activity, I discovered what the U101 mission was trying to inspire us to do; get involved early, build your personal capital and push yourself to be a leader wherever you go.
There is a special group of local moms that would hand out cookies, hugs and wisdom every Monday on campus. They were called "Ask A Mom" and I first met them when I lost my wallet my first year at Carolina. Over my four years, this group of "Cookie Moms" became very cherished friends of mine over the years. One of my favorite pieces of advice was from one of the moms, “If you don’t keep stretching yourself, you will never know how far you can actually go,” they once told me during my Sophomore year. I took this as guidance and applied it into different aspects of my life: traveling abroad, Nursing school, relationships, applying for jobs and for other aspects for the rest of my college career.
My most recent personal challenge was to breathe sixty feet under water. An open water scuba certification was something I use to think of as useless, as I can breathe just fine above the water. What I didn’t realize however, was that this personal challenge would force me to remain calm under pressure (literally) and to take advantage of exploring as much out of life as I can. As a new graduate nurse, I anticipate starting off my career with critical care experience and patients with high acuity. In high stakes high stress environments like this, the strongest leaders are the ones that can remain calm and can adapt to complications with ease. Scuba diving has helped me train my body to keep calm even when I am uneasy and a little scared.
Using these personal challenges to get out in the world and experience new environments is something I will do for the rest of my life. I am so grateful for the opportunities and support of those around me that let me challenge myself. My grandmother once told me a story about someone who always prayed to win the lottery, but never bought a ticket. “If you want to win the lottery, Caroline, you have to buy a ticket.” I learned that nothing ever comes unless you take that first step, get involved, and buy a ticket.