Service Week & A2 Data Dive
November 6-11, 2017 | Service Week and A2 Data Dive | Alexandra Carey | MSI 1st Year, User Experience Research & Design
Each year, students, faculty, and staff from the School of Information can chose to take part in UMSI Service Week, and participate in various projects with different non-profit organizations in the Ann Arbor area and surrounding communities. Whether it be helping design a prototype for a new-voters kit, or working to winterize the arboretum, there were plenty of different ways to get involved this year.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve dedicated at least a week per year, if not more, of my time to community service, so I was eager to get involved and help as much as I could when UMSI service week came around. The highlights my of my week were the definetly Friday and Saturday, when I volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and the Ann Arbor Data Dive, respectively.
On Friday, I braved the cold (22 degrees fahrenheit) at 8 a.m. and traveled to a house in Ypsilanti for the Habitat for Humanity project. I expected to be raking leaves or cleaning up the yard, but what I actually did was demolition - tearing down a mudroom with a sledgehammer and ripping old metal siding off the house. Embodying my favorite HGTV personas, this day was a truly blast. I got to physically work to make a difference while connecting with some pretty awesome UMSI students and staff.
On Saturday, I had another early morning, but this time my trek was not as far, or as cold. The Ann Arbor Data Dive, a day-long data data analysis hackathon, took place in North Quad from 9am to 7pm. Though I was only present for the morning shift, I learned a lot about data visualization methods and how nonprofits use that information to improve their businesses or meet their goals. My main role as a volunteer was to hang up signs, set up lunch, and make head counts throughout the day. This opportunity, once again, connected me with some pretty awesome UMSI students, specifically second-years and others I don’t usually have class with that I was able to chat with and get different perspectives about the program.
Overall, I had a great experience with Service Week! We got a lot of work done and had a lot of fun doing it. As mentioned, what I love about community service is its quality to bring people together. I am thankful for the stories we shared and the work we did that contributed to a greater cause in our local community.
