You are on page 1of 4

Leone 1

Steven Leone
SOLC Shadow Experience
11/8/15
University of Rhode Island

Leone 2
Student Organization Leadership Consultants
Hillel Retreat
October 4, 2015
Group:
Hillel
Group Contact & info:
Lauren Cohen (516)-726-0393
lauren_cohen923@my.uri.edu
SOLC Contact:
Maddie Dombi
Goal of Retreat:
Team Building
# Participants:
14
Date:
10/4/15
Time:
2pm-4pm
Location:
Memorial Union Atrium 2
Facilitators:
Phyllis
Food Requests:
none
Special Requests/Needs:
none
Retreat Agenda:
Time/
location
2:002:05
2:052:15
2:152:30
2:303:15
3:153:50

Topic/Activity

Facilitator

Notes/Supplies neede

Introduction

All

Waivers

Icebreaker (Walmart)

Elana

N/A

Group Contract

Kelly

Paper/Markers

Tubes

Phyllis

Tubes

Electric Grid

Calculator spots

3:504:00

Closing Activity (Yarn Toss)

Kelly
(Frame)
Steven
(Debrief)
Phyllis

Handouts:
General Supplies Check list:

Ball of yarn

Leone 3

I shadowed my first retreat on October 4, 2015, and it was a great learning


experience. I worked with a cooperative and empowering team consisting of Kelly
(Lead), Phyllis (Facilitator), and Elana and me (shadows). Hillel was the organization we
worked with, and they were extremely friendly and open to new things. This was
conducive to their personal growth as well as my own. For goals, Hillel wanted to focus
on team building. I think they succeeded through they continuous ability to try new
things and work together to accomplish goals in activities like Electric Grid, and
Tubes.
I was extremely hesitant to participate in any of the retreats during my first year
of college, and my first year being in the Student Organization of Leadership Consultants.
I was nervous and unsure of what to expect. However, taking the SOLC class this
semester changed my perspective on what retreats entailed, as well as what to expect. I
was still nervous going in, but I was excited at the same time. I was responsible for a
debrief activity that followed Kellys Electric Grid. While I value natural conversations,
I didnt think I was quite ready for debriefing without a prop. I really enjoyed the
feelings cards when we used them on one of the first days of the S.O.L.C. class, so I
wanted to implement them here. My rationale was that some people couldnt always
vocalize how theyre feeling. I thought that theres no better way than to have pictures in
front of them with different emotions. Also, emotions demand to be felt. Everyone should
have the opportunity to share how she or he is feeling. Once Kelly completed Electric
Grid, I asked them how they were feeling before the activity, and after. I was extremely

Leone 4
grateful that the group was receptive during this activity. In fact, most of them said it was
their favorite on the evaluation sheets.
If I had to change anything during this retreat, I would change the activity Phyllis
facilitated. She did Pipes. While this group was very high functioning, this activity is
really difficult and they didnt finish in time. The figure we made was far too difficult and
this affected their focus toward the end. I think an alternative would be to void this
activity completely, or do it later in the day after the group was more confident in their
abilities as a team. I implemented some things from this shadow experience into my
facilitation with Colleges Against Cancer. The two most important realizations were
that I could hold a successful debrief, and connect with group members on a personal
level. I havent told many people this, but a member of Hillel approached me after the
retreat and asked me if she could talk to me for a few minutes. Her name is Lindsay. She
told me that shes been struggling with self-esteem issues and that she hasnt been happy.
She doesnt have many college friends, and she just needed someone to talk to. She said
she wouldnt have come to me if I werent approachable. I made an effort the entire
retreat to talk to as many members as I could and try to connect to them on a personal
level. I think this is attainable as long as the effort is given. This meant a lot to me, and
weve been friends to this day.
Ive undoubtedly grown as a leader, facilitator, and person from this experience.
Im grateful for the opportunity. Hillel became a tighter-knit group and their team
building was definitely on par with their goal.

You might also like