Reflection Paper: On-Campus Resources

Among the most satisfactory service that I use weekly in SIU is the student recreation center. It includes various programs offering the chance to enhance the quality of life. This service positively interfered with my daily activities by providing tanning schedules that ran parallel with my class schedule. Using this service was beneficial to me because it allowed the opportunity to improve myself and overcome stressful events.

I also used the Advertisement center. Southern Illinois University provides different resources to allow its students to have the ultimate academic experience. Since I started my freshmen year, I attend and used multiple on-campus resources, which helped with acquiring some of my courses and also allowed the opportunity to interact with different cultures. Before I started attending classes at SIU, I had to visit the undergraduate advisement service. This service’s mission is to guide students beginning from applications completely through graduation. Their expert staff is accessible to offer course arranging, distinguishing monetary assets, and creating educational plans. After I encountered this service I completely understood my major’s objective and what to expect from it in future.

Other services that I visited or used include the registered student organizations (RSO), the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender resource center, and financial aid office. In the RSO, I attended a student organization fair hosted by the “Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.” This was a positive experience from the beginning.  It drives home the point that it is imperative to maintain a social life. I understood that my social life must be experienced as it feeds every other part of my life. In addition, it made me to appreciate leadership and aspire to be a leader and offer my services to the community. Another positive effect occurred when I learned that Fraternity’s main tradition was the promotion of black excellence. I also got enlightened on the way members were selected to join the fraternity. All one needed to do is make an application and then have a personal meeting with the fraternity’s leaders. 

From the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender resource center, I learned about the challenges the LGBT society faces and how they deal with them. I also learned about the twist between homosexuality and religion and understood that one may be gay and still live a religious life. This was counter to my initial holding alongside the Holy Bible’s declaration of homosexuality as among the deadliest of sins. I understood how difficult it was for most people in the LGBT community to come out boldly due to societal restrictions. I, finally, understood that it took a great deal of psychological battle to remain sane for people who are homosexuals in the southern region. 

From the Financial aid office, I gained understanding of the financial operations at both the individual level and how parents saw the monetary guide of the financial and registration status. I also understood how to make an application for financial assistance from the government through the government website known as Free Application Federal Student Aid (FASA). In addition, I got to know the eligibility for any student such intent to get a degree or certificate upon satisfactory academic progress. Students who have been convicted of drug offences while receiving financial aid lose their eligibility for such financial aid. There are also deadlines to meet during applications for financial aid.   

Among the on- campus resources that I know well include the fraternities and sororities. SIU boasts 33 fraternities and sororities. I know well about this as I had kept track of progress of SIU. I have always been interested in leadership roles and fraternities, just like sororities, offer an opportunity to college students to explore their leadership capabilities. I have also been interested by the concept of fraternities and sororities as an influence of the many movies I have watched about the life of college. Another on- campus resources in SIU that I know well is the Library. This is due to the mere fact that academic growth is the principal reason for my move to join the SIU. Because of this, I knew the library as part of the necessary process anyone else who considers their academic lives as an integral part of the whole educational system. 

Another resource that I know well is the clinical center. This is because I fell ill during the initial weeks of my moving and staying in the SIU. It also pays to know where the clinical center is as one never knows when they may fall sick or have an accident. The clinical center is like a lifeline in any institution. It always offers hope for the people it is meant to serve.  

The general lesson and impact of the interactions with the on- campus resources on me was that I learned to appreciate life in whatever state that it took me. In all this, understood that it was imperative to keep my head held high. Ranging from the wellness center, the fraternities, financial aid, the library and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender center that no matter how hard one tried in life, there are bound to be hurdles coming in their way. In spite of such hurdles, however, all that one needed to do was to rise up above them and keep going. Life is an all-smooth channel to success. This was a significant impact as virtually everything that I learned seemed to apply in my practical living. This way, I could feel it all with so much nerve and understanding.

Knowing about these on-campus resources available assisted me in completing my semester positively at SIU. This was mainly through the peace that I had knowing that in cases of anything that I needed from these resources such as books from the library and medical care. I was also able to remain positive and focused throughout the semester thanks to the resources’ guidance in my planning and scheduling. For instance, I established a routine that would always go to the gym every 5 p.m. and to the library every night at around 8 p.m. This was contributive to my positive completion of the first semester.

I will visit virtually all of the resources in future. This is because they have all impacted positively in my life and academics. Furthermore, I do not see any particular resource that would only be available to freshmen exclusively. It is good to be diverse. 

Interaction is important for any person. SIU-funded events seemed too limited or absent during the semester. With only a few privately sponsored events, well-funded people were the attendees. Some people were left out due to financial constraints. There should be more of SIU sponsored events to help improve in wider interaction levels.