Noelle Knight

INTR 1110

SL Portfolio Paper

May 3, 2015
Professor Connie Spanton-Jex

Noelle Knight
INTR 1110
5/3/15
SL Portfolio Paper
This semester, the SLCC ITP students have coordinated with the Sanderson Community
Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (Sanderson) to plan and make possible the Deaf Center
summer day camp for the children in the Deaf community. I was able to participate by working
on planning the activities for one day of the camp week and designing the t-shirt that will be used
for the camp. I have also helped plan in preparation for people, places, food, crafts, etc. This
planning included developing the cost listing for these components. A significant part of the
success of this project was related to developing goals and objectives, some of which were
accomplished during the class, while others will be accomplished in the coming weeks leading
up to the event. Also, the students in our program have helped develop different ways to do
media coverage for this event. We have scheduled many meetings with the Sanderson Center to
coordinate and mediate the planning of the Deaf summer camp. I have also assessed my abilities
and accomplishments throughout this project and how I hope to improve. While working on the
Deaf summer camp project, Ive learned many things and collaborated with many people to
create the summer camp week.
The SLCC ITP students chose the Sanderson Centers camp week as our service learning
project because we felt this was a good way to directly involve ourselves in the Deaf community
and be able to serve them in a way that would benefit them the most. Within this partnership
between Sanderson and SLCC ITP program there have been mutual expectations for completing
certain aspects of the project. The students are expected to plan fieldtrips, events, meals, and
everything in between, including developing the budget for the project. The Sanderson Center
was expected to help mediate between the SLCC ITP and the Deaf community to make sure that

everything is approved and is being done properly. They also needed to apply for the funding for
the project, from the State, so that the Deaf summer camp can become a reality. Personally, I
was expected to plan everything that would be done on Thursday, with the children participating
in the camp. Emilee and I agreed that we would contact the Living Planet Aquarium about
discount group pricing and inform that we were considering their location for the Deaf summer
camp, in June, and that, if their location was chosen, they would need to provide an interpreter
for the children. Later, we will help plan specific activities, during the day, for the children, in
addition to the field trip.
I also helped create a t-shirt design for this years Deaf summer camp. I was in a group
that included Jonni, Kaela, Amy, and me. We all helped develop the idea of what the design
would look like. Once the design was finalized, I put the design together and created the artwork
that will be submitted to the t-shirt company.
Many things were needed for the preparation of the Deaf summer camp project. The first
thing needed were many people, including volunteers, leaders, chaperones, and ASL interpreters.
For example, there will be about 10 volunteers needed each day to help support chaperones,
prepare meals, and be available to assist with other activities and needs that may arise during the
day. There are also many places that will be involved in the Deaf summer camp, besides the
Sanderson Center. I think the final locations we have agreed upon are Wheeler Farm, the
Curiosity Museum, and the Living Planet Aquarium. These locations may be changed, in the
future, due to budgeting, lack of interest, and unforeseen events. Meals also need to be planned
for each of the five days, in keeping with the theme of the day. Crafts and activities may also be
provided, consistent with the days theme. As the date of the event gets closer, there may be
other things that will need to be planned.

The ultimate goal of this project is to provide a safe getaway for the children of the Deaf
community, while having fun and learning many different things. We hope to help the
Sanderson Center accomplish this goal for a successful summer camp by providing several
different services, such as meals, crafts, field trips, etc. Upon completion of the summer camp
week, I hope that the Deaf center will see that we desire to be involved in the Deaf community. I
hope that they will understand that we are dedicated to the Deaf community and hope to always
be able to be involved in it. I also hope to learn many skills throughout the planning and
execution of this project. For example, skills will include better communication with the parents,
children, and leaders involved in the Deaf community. I also believe that the children in the Deaf
community will learn how to better work with each other and listen to the guidance of the
volunteers, leaders, and chaperones. The children will also learn about different subjects that
encompass the theme Discover the World.
Different thinking skills that will be learned throughout this project are things such as
creative thinking, decision making, and problem solving. The students exercise and learn new
creative thinking skills by helping plan and schedule the field trips, create a passport, design a
t-shirt, and create and flyer and vlog to advertise the event. Building our decision making skills
will be attributed to planning the summer camp and coordinating with the Sanderson Center.
Decision making skills have been, and will be developed, during crises of disagreements,
arguments, and unforeseen events that will need to be addressed.
Several different personal qualities will be demonstrated. These include leadership,
responsibility, sociability, teamwork, dedication, coordination, and community involvement.
These personal qualities were exhibited throughout the planning and coordination efforts of the

summer camp. For example, to successfully accomplish the goal, it was necessary to set and
meet multiple deadlines, throughout the planning process.
Media coverage for this event will be limited, except within the Deaf community. Forms
of media coverage will include a strong use of social media, such as Facebook or Twitter. It
might also include reporting by local Deaf newspapers and newsletters affiliated with the
Sanderson Center. The SLCC ITP students have also created a flyer and a vlog for the
Sanderson Centers use, to advertise the summer camp. These items have already been posted to
the Sanderson Centers Facebook page. I was able to help develop a specific marketing tool for
the summer camp. This tool is the t-shirt design. The t-shirt design was developed by Kaela,
Jonni, Amy and me. Once the design concept had been finalized, I was able to bring the concept
to life by doing the technical work to produce a design that is ready to be submitted to the t-shirt
printer company.
Every student in the ITP was able to take part in planning the activities for each of the
days of the summer camp week. The students were broken into groups and each group contacted
the location to inform them of how many participants would be coming, what day to expect, and
that they would be required to provide an ASL interpreter for their customers.
The students have been assigned the task of planning, coordinating, and executing each
detail of the summer camp. Each student was assigned to a group for each day of the week.
They were responsible for planning every detail of their assigned day. I was assigned to
Thursday, along with Emilee. We came up with the idea to go on a field trip to the aquarium.
We also needed to develop meals and activities that coordinate with the theme of the day. For
example, we plan to include fish shaped items in the kids meals. We also plan to include water
balloon activities and games for the kids to play, after the field trip. Teachers were expected to

mediate between the SLCC ITP students and the Sanderson Center. The Sanderson Center is
responsible for supervising and approving everything and ensuring that everything is going
according to plan.
The following is a timeline that was developed to ensure that milestones are met and
everything is accomplished in a timely manner:

January 16 First meeting with the Sanderson Center to begin planning.

January 30 Online collaborations for field trips and budget requirements are due

February 13 Second meeting with the Sanderson Center to update on the

progress of planning

March 6 Third meeting with the Sanderson Center to update on the progress of
the planning

March 25 Second online collaborations due for all components of the planning

April 10 Fourth meeting with the Sanderson Center to update on the progress of
the planning

April 24 Fifth meeting with the Sanderson Center to update on the progress of
the planning

Future meetings Dates and times have not been published yet, to finalize
planning

June 15 19 Week of the Deaf summer camp

The way that I will know that I have accomplished my goals that I have established while
planning, coordinating and executing the Deaf summer camp is that afterwards I will feel that I
have done a good job as I finish my duties with summer camp. I have already finished some of
the things that are required, of me, for the summer camp, such as the t-shirt design. I feel that I
did this well because I feel a sense of accomplishment when I talk about it. I hope that the t-shirt
design will be approved by the Deaf Center and will be used on the t-shirts for this years camp.

I have learned that the community partners are willing to work with us as long as we put forth
the effort to help them. I see this and how the Deaf community shows their appreciation for our
efforts to help them plan the summer camp. All of the participants involved in the summer camp
will learn how to better communicate and involve themselves in the Deaf community. We will
be able to see how successful this is by how successful the Deaf summer camp is. I think that
my skills of learning, receiving information, and responding in the correct manner have
increased during my interaction with the Sanderson Center, while planning this project. I can see
this in how much they thank us for our service to the Deaf community.
Throughout this semester, I feel that my collaboration with the Deaf center to help plan
the Deaf summer camp has helped me, as well as the Deaf community in many ways. I have
helped with the preparation, created goals and objectives, assisted with media coverage, and
scheduling of this project. Through my participation in this project, I have been able to assess
my skills and attributes that I have been able to contribute to this project. I hope to continue to
grow the skills learned on this project by helping plan, and participate in, more Deaf events, in
the future.