Tuesday, April 14, 2015

TCU Honors Junior Makes a Difference

Addy Kryger


It’s not uncommon that TCU Honors students do some pretty exceptional things. For example, former TCU Honors student, Wendy Davis, was a gubernatorial candidate for the Democratic Party, a former US Senator as well as an attorney, business owner, and former Fort Worth City Councilwoman.



Senator Wendy Davis, photo courtesy of TCU Honors College



O. Homer Erekson is currently the Dean of the TCU Neeley School of Business and has numerous research articles published in prestigious, academic journals.


 Dean Erekson, photo courtesy of TCU Honors College.



Now let’s talk about someone more recent. TCU Honors student, Darby Dame, changes lives every summer. Dame has been attending the same summer camp since she was just eight years old. Now a junior in college, Dame is a counselor and helps kids grow comfortable and confident in their own skin.

She has come up with something she calls her “Camp Claims,” which are the five things she believes kids take away from camp.



Honors students Darby Dame. Photo courtesy of TCU Connections

Dame’s Camp Claims:
1.     Gain resiliency: Campers are allowed to fail in a safe environment, which pushes them to keep going and try new things.
2.     Become independent: Campers are away from their parents and have to learn to do things on their own, like make their bed or decide how they want to spend their time.
3.     Learn social skills: Campers are put in a situation that encourages them to build relationships. They have to adapt and learn how to make friends quickly.
4.     Be successful: Camp gives kids more outlets to succeed than the school grading system does.
5.     Engage in the outdoors: A lot of the camp activities are based outdoors. This supports a healthy lifestyle and encourages an inquisitive nature.

These are five great things that every person should experience, not just when you’re at camp. Dame is working to make that happen. Over the next two years, Dame will be researching ways schools can create a camp-like environment to foster positivity inside the classroom as well as outside. This research project will eventually become her Senior Honors Thesis, so keep an eye out for her presentation in the spring of 2016!

5 comments:

  1. Great to see past and current students who are making a difference in the global community!

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  2. I like the organization of the blog, it's very fluid. Also, it's cool to see TCU Alumni who have become really successful!

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  3. I really liked the layout of this blog. The placement of pictures and use of bullets made it so I was engaged and entertained while reading it.

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  4. Great job of using a prior Honors student success story and then leading into one that is building up and working their way up the success ladder.

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  5. I love the information given in the bullet points. It gives a short and easy way to find important information in the blog. I never knew that those people TCU honors students that was interesting to learn. The past and present idea was an excellent way to get your point across.

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