Short and To the Point

The School board meeting this year was surprisingly short. Don anticipated the meeting to be over around 8:00 to 8:30 PM but instead it ended around 7:30 PM making this blog substantially short.

My day began by going through the motions of school. At the end of the academic day, Jackie and I walked to my house to get ready for the school board meeting that was going to take place at 6:00 PM in De jean Middle School. We took our time since it was too early to head to the meeting.

Friendly faces

Once it was time, my father accompanied us to the event. We still got there very early so we decided to go outside for some fresh air and to kill sometime. When we went back in the multipurpose room, many of our fellow ILCers had gotten there. Jackie and I quickly spotted Aimee and headed over to say hi.While we were talking about our day, I saw my cohort gather so I headed over to exchange greetings.

When the meeting started we proceeded to seat in the from because we were going up first. Mr. Hillyer sat on the second row and gave us a small talk about the presentation. When we went up, Mr. Hillyer talked about who he was and what universities we are going to visit before our class starts then turned it over to Chris, who was standing next to him. Chris expressed how grateful we all are for the opportunities to expand our horizons through the Ivy League Connection. 

After his small speech we sat back down and waited for the other cohorts to go up. The last one to go up was the Vanderbilt cohort for which Edward was speaking. Thanks to Ms.Kronenberg we got to finish our presentations early and as a result  got home in time to finish our school work.

After the meeting it was time for pictures! Don had set up a stage out in the courtyard for our group picture. I sat on the second row behind the guys. After what seemed like a thousand pictures, Don was satisfied and it was time to go home. 

I enjoyed the meeting because it wasn't too long like last time. It made me realize that we are on the verge of going off to Pennsylvania to pursue greater knowledge to ma

ke our lives and community better.

Presenting The Future

DeJean's Logo

It was 5:25 PM when my mom and I arrived at Lavonya DeJean Middle School in Richmond. Both she and I had to be there for the West Contra Costa Unified School District Board Meeting no later than 6:00 PM in the school's multi purpose room. I was dressed in my black semi-sheer blouse, tan dress pants, navy blue cardigan and my black flats with my hair in a high ponytail ready to go. Whenever I'm early to something, I get excited and feel as if a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders, leaving me stress-free. I grabbed my teal matte portable charger and exited my mom's dirty, white 2006 Town & Country van. 


Since I was early, I decided to do some exploring of the campus. DeJean Middle School is fairly large for a middle school but is inconveniently built in front of BART tracks. I can only imagine how annoying that must be hearing the loud sound of the train passing by while you're in class learning or while trying to take a test. 

All of the front gates were locked, so I went around to the side where I found doors that opened to the multi purpose room. I walked back to the car, dragging my mom along to the entrance.

I opened one of the double doors, letting my mom in first. I turned around, checking if there was anyone else behind me and I saw Allonna and her mom walking up the sidewalk toward the multi purpose room. Holding the door open for both of them as they walked in, I said "hi" and wished Allonna a happy birthday. Attending a Board meeting is some way to spend a birthday. 

Inside Lavonya DeJean's multi-purpose room.

Allonna and I spotted Don in a gray button up working at a table in the back of the room; we greeted him eagerly. He informed us that the meeting wouldn't be starting until around 6:40 PM so we had a lot of time still on our hands.

Allonna had a smart idea to take pictures of the place as we waited for the time to pass by and the rest of our cohort to appear.


While we were taking shots of our surroundings, Diana had arrived. She was dressed in her black and gold flats, black slacks and blazer with a tan and black polka dot top. The last of our cohort to arrive, pointed out by Allonna, was Chris. He was outfitted smoothly in his black suit, red tie, white button-up, and square-tip loafers while checking in near the front with his mom. We all chatted for a bit before making our way to our reserved fold-up seats near the front of the room. Sooner than we knew it, the meeting's agenda began.

Diana and I

Thanks to Don working his magic, he was able to have us moved up to the first on the agenda preventing us from being out too late. I was relieved; I was still exhausted from the Town Hall dinner the previous night. 

The first cohort announced to present to the Board was, my cohort: The University of Pennsylvania. They called up John's name to introduce us. He walked to the podium with all smiles signaling us to follow him. As we rose from our seats, I felt confident knowing that we're being supported and being up there with my amazing cohort. We all grew comfortable and friendly with each other so fast, it's amazing. John gave an introduction of each of us, telling the board and the audience who we are, our grade level, and the high school we're currently attending. He also stated what program we'll be studying at Penn as well as the other university site visits we will be touring - Georgetown University in Washington DC, Colombia University in New York City, and of course, The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. 

It was now Chris's turn to give his speech representing our cohort. He made a lovely speech, thanking Don and Mrs. Kronenberg for the opportunity and founding the Ivy League Connection because without them, none of it would be possible. He also shared how enthusiastic all of us were to be going to Penn to the Social Justice Research Academy and how we will come back blossomed from where we first came in. Listening to Chris present drew a smile on my face because everything he was saying spoke for all of us. I was more than happy just thinking about what our future has to bring to us. The Ivy League Connection is genuinely a one-of-a kind program that we're so blessed to have and the opportunity to be a part of. I know the process of our month long expedition will spark a change in all of us for the better and we're going to take advantage of this. 

The five of us, including John, still holding our grins, made our way back to our seats as the audience applauded for our cohort. We all respectfully listened to each cohort present themselves and discuss the future of their journey. It was satisfying hearing how appreciative everyone is for the programs they're going to, giving the ILC a stronger purpose for its existence than it already has. 

John, Diana, Me and Mike

Once the last cohort, Cornell, finished closing their final words, we all walked together outside to take an annual group picture enforced by Don. Don had specific instructions of how we would be placed in the picture. We ladies were instructed to sit on the long, wooden bench covered by a pink set of tablecloths. Four of us were required to stand in the center right behind the bench because there were so many of us. The five guys sat with their legs crossed centered on the floor. Our parents and chaperones filled in the spaces in the back standing behind all of us. Taking photos of all of us smiling and with our eyes open was a difficult job to do, which is why Don took 26 shots of the entire group to ensure he got at least one good quality image. 

When Don dismissed us, we were allowed to leave. My close friend, Diana Valle, and I decided to stay for a bit and take some pictures of our own. We gave her dad and my mom our phones to capture us together. Since my mom is nowhere near tech-savvy, even though all she had to do is hold the phone and press the white, circular button at the bottom. She gave my phone to Diana's dad instead to get some pictures on my phone. Diana had spotted her chaperone for Cornell, Mike, and asked him to take a picture with us. I called John over as well so we would have both of them in our picture. Diana's dad took around 20 pictures in total; satisfied, we thanked our chaperones for joining us and split up from there. 

Ending the evening on a good note, my mom and I left, saying good-bye to everyone then headed to the car, where my older sister was waiting. I had an enjoyable evening and am even more anxious for Philly.  

Meet, Talk, Eat, Sleep

University of Pennsylvania Flag

Stressing out over my routinely late mom,  like always, I couldn't help almost crying. The cohort and one of each of our parents had to meet at El Cerrito Plaza BART Station no later than 5:10 PM for our evening dinner with some of the sponsors, chaperones, and alumni from the University of Pennsylvania at Town Hall restaurant in San Francisco. It was 4:00 PM and I was still at my high school from when it ended at 3:09 PM, still needing to change into my formal attire. I was utterly terrified of being late and the risk of losing my scholarship to the university. I thought to myself, "You really had to do this out of all days? This is my future and the dinner is my gateway to so much more opportunities. I can't be late to this." As I was about to call John and Don, my mom finally appeared with my sister in the car ready to be dropped off. 

We easily dumped my sister at one of her friends' house and swiftly carried on our journey to the BART station. Looking at my iPhone 5s for the time only made me stress out even more. I put my phone down and on the charger before it died and gave me an annoying headache stressing over the time. To save me some time, I decided to switch into my blouse and put my slacks over my leggings carefully in the back of the car while my mom was driving. To my surprise, the time we arrived to the station was 4:34 PM. We were the first to arrive other than Don. I was more than relieved seeing the time; I don't even want to imagine what the inconvenience of me being late could have cost everyone.

My mom and I walked over to the station from the parking lot and greeted Don. He was pleased to see us early. It was cold outside in El Cerrito; I was shivering waiting on the rest of the party to find their way to the right station. As time passed by everyone began coming one after the other. Once all of my cohort and chaperones arrived Don gave us a spiel about public transportation, clipper cards, escalator courtesy, and how satisfied he was on our punctuality. At first I thought that it was unnecessary to go over these things it seemed like common sense, but then I remembered Don only goes over past mistakes and potential problems. Throughout the informative speech the rest of the people had appeared: Lisa Romero (Pinole Valley High senior, attending UPENN in the fall), Jun Zhou (Pinole Valley High graduate, attended Experimental Physics program at Penn as a part of the ILC and is currently at UC Berkeley), Alex Elms (Pinole Valley High Graduate and recent graduate from Penn), Mrs. Kronenberg (Co-Founder of ILC), and her husband, Mr. Kronenberg (alumnus from Dartmouth College and Colombia Law School). Don ended the speech just as the final person, John Hillyer, had arrived. We headed through thee automatic gates of the BART station and went up the escalator to the platform."

On the San Francisco train, I had sat next to Diana's older sister, Karen Ramirez. She told me about her experience coming from El Salvador six years ago and her life at Contra Costa Community College. She's majoring in Social Welfare and is transferring to UC Berkeley soon. She gave me some advice to stay involved within my school because it will help me further down the road showing me things that I may be interested in pursuing a career in; it shows me what I like and I dislike  making it easier to settle on my career. Karen had shared how proud she was of my cohort for going so far to attend the University of Pennsylvania over the summer; there was a true reason we all made it so we should take advantage of it. As the train pulled into Embarcadero BART Station, I thanked Karen for sharing her experiences and for the advice because I know it will assist me to continue striving. We all stepped off the train and continued to the escalator until we were on the streets of the city.

Town Hall Restaurant in San Francisco

The walk to Town Hall was close by from where we got off; It was just a few blocks away. The streets of San Francisco was beautiful and busy as always. There were a lot of construction work in the process as we were walking to Town Hall which probably caused the sewage odor lingering in the city air. We soon approached Town Hall leaving that repulsive smell behind us. The restaurant itself was small on the outside, but once you step in it's far from small. All that you see from where you first walk in is a patio with many lights along the borderline of the "ceiling" and "wall" and multiple waiters setting up a long, white table with around 24 chairs placed throughout the sides of it. That table is where Don, my cohort, UPENN alumnus, and sponsors were dining at. There were large heaters that hung above the tables for when the weather turned cool. The inside of restaurant had three floors where people had private reservations and where the bathroom was located. The main level stretched down and around the corner filled with a large abundance of people. It was hard to tell where the end of it was. 

Inside of Town Hall 1st Floor

Most of us had come to the restaurant earlier than from when our reservation was set for. We had a good amount of time to kill so we all began getting to know each other and asked questions for our sponsors and alumni from Penn to get a better feel of what it's like being there and learning more about themselves. We barely started talking to John, when Allonna randomly fainted. I was extremely confused and concerned as she started losing her balance and then collapsed against the hardwood floor. Her mom and John came to her side quickly, ensuring her safety. We took a few minutes watching her from a distance, giving her some space. Don took the alarming situation and turned the spotlight onto the sponsors and alumni giving Allonna and her mom some privacy as well as the opportunity for the rest of the cohort to get to know them better.

Distracting us from Allonna, Chris, Diana, and I began talking to Ms. Topor, Ms. Morris, and Ms. Andrea. Ms. Topor and Ms. Andrea both are alumnae from Penn while Ms. Morris is an alumna from UC Berkeley. They all told us about their experiences at their schools and how they felt about it. They decided to attend those schools because they felt as if it was meant for them to go there. Ms. Morris was amazed at Berkeley. She came from a small town in Southern California so the transition into Berkeley was different; she loved it. Ms.Andrea had a great time at Penn. The environment and the community is diverse and there's so much to do. 

Table Set Up

Don announced it was time for dinner, so we ended our conversations and went to find our name tags showing our designated assigned seats. I had thought to find my set earlier while I was taking pictures of the restaurant to save me some time later on. My mom was sitting to my right and Diana to my left. In front of me was Mr. Mahendra Prasad, left of him was my fellow Forensics member, Lisa Romero, and to his right was Ms. Liz Block. We all stood up and gave brief introductions about ourselves; some gave longer ones sharing a more detailed background. Getting up, my clumsy self accidentally fell back down before fully standing making me feel slightly uncomfortable when I introduced myself. Diana gave a pleasant speech thanking everyone for our opportunity and excitement of our future plans being in the East Coast as well as her past experience the previous year at Brown University for Women & Leadership in the ILC. 

Dinner Menu

The menu included French roll bread with butter, biscuits with a spicy-sweet jam spread, salad with fetta cheese, walnuts, and romaine lettuce, grilled mixed vegetables, asparagus garnished in bread crumbs, prime rib, and deep fried chicken, with a dessert of chocolate and sea salt caramel fudge brownies. As the food had came one by one, we all were engaged in conversation, but still managed to multi-task eating as well. Ms. Block is a graduate from Duke University, where she majored in psychology. She is also a part of the West Contra Costa School Board. Mahendra graduated Penn in 2004 and had a memorable experience. He's originally from Memphis, Tennessee and lived on a farm. As he was discussing his past experiences, he emphasized with his honest and wise words that accomplishments and awards are a side effect of your hard work; you need to focus on the process instead of the end result. After hearing that, I started self-reflecting and told myself to keep reminding myself that from here on and throughout my future. I will forever keep that saying with me thanks to Mr. Prasad; thank you. 

I had excused myself to use the unnecessarily far restroom on the second floor of Town Hall. I came back in the middle of hearing Don's closing speech. I felt embarrassed interrupting him from speaking, but thankfully no one really seemed to notice. I thought I had come near the beginning of his speech but it turned out to be near the end. I was ashamed missing a generous part of it thinking to myself, "I knew I shouldn't have drank that much water." We finished up the night with a picture in front of a boulder next to Town Hall; it was the cohort holding the flag of UPENN and alumni of Penn with our supporting sponsors right behind us. We all headed back on the train soon after, feeling tired and full. That night is a night that I will never forget.

Excitement With a Side of Fudge

After a long morning of presenting at Hilltop mall, I was ready to once again meet with my cohort to have dinner at Town Hall Restaurant long various sponsors and UPenn alums. I didn't have to worry much about getting ready since I was already dressed. When I got home, I touched up my hair and was ready to head to the Bart station with my sister Karen.

We got to the BART station with time to spare. Kamillah, her mom and Don were already waiting when we got there. Soon after, Allonna arrived and then Chris with his mother. Don broke down the evening for us while some of the ILC alumni arrived to join us on the very windy spot. Don finished up his little seminar then we boarded the train headed towards San Francisco. I sat next to Lisa Romero and we talked about her excitement for her life at UPenn. We kept talking through the whole ride until it was our stop. We had arrived in San Francisco.

Entrance to Town Hall

We made our way onto street level and began our short walk to the Town Hall Restaurant. We arrived to the restaurant pretty early and got to mingle with everyone there. After the mingle session, Ms. Kronenberg, who is apart of the WCCCUSD school board, introduced the alumni, sponsors and us, the ILCers, to each other at the table. This lead into my small speech about ILC, what the opportunity means to me and my cohort and how it personally changed my life as a whole. Soon after the food, was served and we dug in. For the reputation of the restaurant the food was not what I expected. Liz Block and Mahendra Prasad were sitting across from me at the table and we talked through the whole dinner.

Liz went to Duke university and majored in psychology and Mahendra went to various different universities and is currently getting his phD  at UC Berkeley. Mahendra recommended a couple books to Kamillah and I about how to make the best transition from high school to college life. he also told us that during his high school years, he wasn't much of an academic but still got good scores on the SAT and ACT. Liz told us that she was a first-generation college student and had an amazing time at Duke. That struck me, because I will also be a first-generation college student along with my sister. Then all too soon, it was time for dessert.

With delicious fudge brownies by our side, Don gave one last speech. He summed up all of what ILC stands for and reminded all of us of the generosity that went into the scholarships we received. After we finished our amazing dessert, we stepped outside to take a photo with all alumni and all the ILCers by a huge boulder next to the restaurant ending our beautiful and splendid night.

A Show of Support

The multipurpose room at Levonya Dejean, where we were presenting ourselves to the Board of Education

After an encouraging dining experience with the UPenn cohort the night before, I was enthusiastic about getting together with the Ivy League Connection as a whole for our school board presentation on May 25. I arrived with my mother to the site of the school board meeting a few minutes early, and watched as students from all across the district, but all beneficiaries of this incredible opportunity, filed in.

Parents, scholars, and facilitators mingling and preparing for the presentation

Our group looked notably different from the tutorial, having transitioned from leggings to slacks and hoodies to blazers. We were all eager to represent the ILC and our respective cohorts in the best way possible. As we waited for things to get started, we chatted about our experiences so far and how much we were looking forward to what was to come.

Once we had perfected how we were going to hold our flag, the UPenn cohort took our seats in the front row. Luckily, the agenda was adjusted so that we could get home early to complete our blogs and our homework. Now, ILC was the first item. And UPenn was first up. Mr. Hillyer and Chris did a great job of introducing us and expressing our gratitude at being a part of such a unique and important program. 

After the students and chaperons from every university were finished presenting, we all went outside to take a group picture. It took a minute for everyone to get into place and for Don to get enough shots so that there will hopefully be one where everyone is looking at the camera and smiling. We'll see how we look when the poster comes out.

I realized during the presentation just how lucky I am to go to school in a district that is actively attempting to create a college going culture and making it possible for students to learn about different schools and prepare for life after high school . It means a lot that not only does the Board of Education and the district in its entirety cooperate with the ILC and finance certain aspects of it, but they also want to see and hear from the students who they are helping. I appreciate the support that I could feel from everyone in the room during the presentation; it makes me much more confident going forward with this experience and even more determined to bring back what I learn to the community. 

Making Connections

On the evening of May 24, the UPenn cohort took a trip to San Francisco for dinner with a group of alumni from UPenn and the Ivy League Connection, school board members, parents, chaperons, facilitators, and sponsors of the program. The purpose of the gathering was to introduce us to a support network that we will be able to take advantage of throughout our time in the ILC and beyond. 

We ate on the beautiful outdoor patio at Town Hall Restaurant

For me, the night got off to an interesting start. After a BART ride into the city and a short walk to Town Hall Restaurant, where the dinner was held, I had mingled for a few minutes when I started to feel woozy. Before I knew it, I was on the floor, not having realized that I had fainted until I registered the sore spot where my head had bumped into the ground and the concerned faces of Mr. Hillyer and my mother hovering over me. There was no serious damage, but I had never fainted before in my life, and the experience was rather disorienting and embarrassing. On the bright side, it gave me a good story to tell (unfortunately for you all, but fortunately for me, Don did not get any footage of the fall).

A table setting with my name on it was carefully and beautifully prepared for me

Once I recovered, I quickly sprang back into action and began connecting with new arrivals. Within minutes, the value of these dinners became very clear to me. I was receiving so many bits of wisdom and advice from those who had attended prestigious universities and gone through the ILC process before. As we sat down to eat, I became aware of the community that I had become a part of, and I was very grateful. 

Throughout the meal, I continued to speak with my neighbors about what my summer on the East Coast would be like. Between bites of delicious fried chicken and salted caramel fudge, we discussed everything from weather to course load to prospective tourist destinations. I also shared what my hopes were for after I graduate. After some final words from Don and a group photo, I was sad to be heading home. As usual after an ILC event, I felt energized and ready-to-go, and I was disappointed when I realized that we still have over a month before we get to leave!

Building Bridges

On May 20, all of us attending The University of Pennsylvania met our chaperone, John Hillyer, for the first time. It was hard to believe that we were meeting him so soon. Time has been moving faster than a blink of an eye. It scared me but the thought of attending UPENN and going to the East Coast gave me a rush of excitement and curiosity outweighing my nerves. Our meeting place was at Zachary’s Chicago Pizza on Solano Avenue in Berkeley at 5:30 PM. Zachary’s is my all-time favorite pizza parlor. It has been at least six months since I have been at this welcoming, street-style restaurant. Hearing the news prior triggered flashbacks of all the mouth-watering deep-dish style pizzas they have and sent a wave of pleasant remembrance; I soon grew hungry and eager.

Don graciously offered to give me a ride to Zachary’s. I took his offer appreciatively; knowing how my mom is with time, I knew I would have been late. We arrived to the restaurant around 5:10 PM. To burn some time, Don and I cruised around Albany and Berkeley until it got closer to the meeting time. He showed me some of the million dollar houses in the residential areas. The neighborhood was peaceful and the houses were gorgeous. I cannot recall seeing such stunning homes before, it was slightly hard to believe people could afford to live there. I thought to myself, “I wonder what it would feel like living in such luxurious places like those.” The styles ranged from modern designed to old-fashioned one car garage homes or small one-story homes to massive two-story ones; I was left in awe.

As 5:30 PM drew near, Don swung by Zachary’s again to drop me off. By then I saw familiar figures of my UPENN cohorts – Allonna, Chris, and Diana – standing patiently communicating with one another in front of Zachary’s waiting for everyone else to arrive. I thanked Don for the nice mini tour and ride as I carefully got out his car. John walked up casually with his surprise guest, Liz Sanders. I didn’t recognize him as I first glanced at him, but as they came closer to us I realized who he was, answering my mental question of “Why is this tall man approaching us so casually like he knows who we are?” Soon after, we all headed inside of the famous pizza parlor.

Zachary's on Solano Avenue in Berkeley

Zachary’s is a small place, but can fit a reasonable amount of people. The waitress seated us near the door and politely handed us our menus. John, thinking strategically, advised we order our food first since it takes around forty-five minutes to make the pizza. The menu had so many scrumptious choices to choose from; making this decision was a challenging task that required extensive thought. We all agreed on what to order by the time the waitress came by to take our order. John confidently ordered for us the Barbecue Chicken deep dish pizza, the weekly special – “Za-Curry’s” Chicken Pizza, thin crust – and a small cheese pizza for Allonna with some healthy appetizers: Greek and Caesar salads suggested by Chris.

Chris and Me Sitting Near the Door

After ordering we all introduced ourselves and started speaking to one another, getting to know each other better. John shared with us that he is an AP US History at De Anza High School and attended school at Chico State. He began telling us about what the life is like on the East Coast, all the things that he’s experienced in the past with the ILC and college, some of the possible university visits, what we should expect while being there, and what he expects from us as our salads arrived. Some of the stories seemed to blow me away. For example, he was stuck at an airport in Texas for twenty-four hours with the past UPENN cohorts due to a massive storm. I can’t even imagine how terrifying or horrible that must have been. From all of his stories, I’m most interested to see other than all of the prestigious universities and marvelous traveling visits on the East Coast is “the Target of all 7/11’s” Wawa. I’ve heard of it in vlogs (video blogs) that I watched a few years ago from people on the East Coast. The way it’s described, it seems as if it’s a luxurious mini market that has a wide variety. When we come across one, I’m absolutely going to explore the inside and snag a delicious snack.

Liz is a current AP Literature teacher at De Anza High School. She also taught at El Cerrito High School for one year. She had attended undergrad school at Stanford and Graduate school at Columbia; she is also an alumni of Oxford University. She told us about her experiences at Stanford and Columbia stating how different the environments were. She enjoyed both schools but the city life was more for her. Astounded I was from the choice of schools she was enrolled at, I knew I wanted to attend schools as reputable as Stanford, Columbia, and Oxford. As I thought about it, I realized that I was going to attend a similar school, UPENN, even if it will only be for a few weeks. Listening to Liz and John retelling their college life stories made me think to consider doing what they did in the future when I begin to apply for colleges or go on site visits and tours – try picturing myself attending the university and living around the area.

The dinner was going fantastic when Chris and I suddenly started feeling a bit cold. We sat closest to door being the cause of our seemed spontaneous chills. Every time someone opened up the door or left it open, a cold draft of air would creep its way to our table and give us a cool sensation that grazed our skin. I didn’t know how long we would be able to tolerate the cool breeze, especially since we both had on thin button-ups. Thankfully the feeling soon disappeared as the waitress came out with the hot pizzas as it warmed up the room.

Close Up of Zachary's Barbecue Chicken Pizza

She placed the pies on wooden stools that were the height of the table and courteously served us each a piece on our white saucers. The food looked delectable. The Barbecue Chicken had barbecue sauce drizzled all over the pie with chunks of tomato, cilantro and chicken on the inside and cheddar and jack cheese. The “Za-Curry” Chicken Pizza had pieces of curry chicken, onions, and golden raisins with and mozzarella cheese. It was hard maintaining my patience and self-control but I was able to hold it down. The food tasted even better than what I remembered. I felt somewhat ashamed at how I could forget about pizza this satisfying, even though it had been only six months.

The evening soon ended with all of stuffed and satisfied. I brought some of the leftover pizza home for my mom and sister to share since no one else wanted to take some of it with them. I felt so accomplished and more informed about getting to know my cohorts, chaperon, and special guest a little bit better. The experience of us all eating and talking with one another so comfortably  foreshadowed what I can assume it will be like between us in the future at Penn. That night, I built bridges with people that I know are outstanding people and who I can turn to for advice, help, or just to have a fun time.

Great Pizza; Great People

After school, I rushed to finish the project for my Civil Engineering class so I could catch an Uber to Zachary's Chicago Style Pizza on Solano Ave. My friends came along with me since they had never been to Zachary's before.

We got there very early and decided to go for a walk. I came across a Japanese antique store full of very interesting items that ranged from tea kettles to art pieces. After a quick stay at the antique shop, we walked and found Pegasus bookstore. To my surprise Chris was already in front of the restaurant taking pictures. I went over to say hi and to kill time we went into the bookstore. Shortly Allonna got there and joined us at the book store. As it got closer to 5:30 PM, we made our way out of the bookstore to find that Don was dropping off Kamillah. 

In no time our chaperon, John came with Liz. We walked in the restaurant and got seated almost immediately. Once we were seated quickly congregated on which pizzas we should order. together we decided on three different pizzas: the Chicago deep dish style BBQ chicken pizza, the "Za'Curry" pizza, and a plain cheese pizza. while the cooks were busy in the kitchen crafting our food, we talked about what we  should expect on our trip like during our college tour we must punctual on our of travels so that we can experience everything the day has to offer. We also got to know Liz. She teaches at ECHS and her father teaches at ECHS. What a small world! 

And so we eat the amazing pizza. I personally liked the curry pizza more than the others because it wasn't as sweet. John continued telling us about the exciting places we will visit in Pennsylvania like Wawas which sounds like 7 Eleven on steroids. All too soon, the dinner came to an end and we all asked our last questions and said goodbye. I think that it was a very successful outing because we got to make connections with each other over food. There is just no better way. I look forward to seeing more of my cohort this summer! 

Going Beyond Basic

Waking up and starting the day was exhausting for me, mainly because I had Prom the previous night and remained awake later than I should have. I wearily put on my gray Draymond Green jersey from my favorite basketball team, The Golden State Warriors, with my all white Express jean jacket, dark blue jeans, and white leather Converse. Before making my way out the door, I grabbed my camera for the photography and blogging lesson in the tutorial. I stepped into the passenger’s seat of my mom’s car and headed off to De Anza High School where the tutorial was held at.

De Anza High School

By the time I finally broke out of my sluggish mood, we pulled up to the front De Anza at 7:45 AM. All of the cohorts were required to be there no later than 8:00 AM. Making sure I didn’t forget anything, I began walking toward the inside of the large school. It was overcast and cold outside; I was shivering under my jacket until I reached the computer lab where everyone was conversing with one another. Finding the room wasn’t hard, especially since there was an Ivy League Connection banner covering a generous part of the front gate and past it, the only room with its door propped wide open. I was the last one to walk through the door. Some of my fellow cohorts were staring at me as I did making me feel slightly awkward and embarrassed even though it was around 7:55 AM. I took a seat at one of the computers in the back next to one of my fellow cohorts almost tripping over the many wires on the ground belonging to a lot of the tech equipment and servers.

The tutorial opened with Don welcoming us and announcing the available snacks he had in case we got hungry. I was completely elated when I saw the Red Vines and chocolate chip cookies. My stomach was nearly punching out of me because of my unsettling hunger. I guess those are the consequences of not eating breakfast before a long day ahead. I grabbed a considerable amount of food and casually walked back to my seat. 

Sooner than I knew it, we were flying through the agenda with great ease until we began blogging due to problems with the computers not allowing us to sign in and unresponsive servers. After trying four different computers, I became a nuisance. I was the only person who hadn't blogged yet preventing everyone from continuing with the agenda. I ended up sharing computers with my friend Diana. 

In an effort to make up lost time we quickly moved on to learning techniques to take photos and uploading it to the blog. I whipped out my Nikon camera from my light blue and gray Adidas drawstring bag to find that it was unusable because it needed to be charged. Disappointed, I used another alternative to reaching the intended goal. Don, being the resourceful person he is, had flash drives with images for us to use in case we couldn't use a camera. Using one of those images, I was finally able to post my blog successfully and catch up with everyone else. 

The rest of the tutorial went by smoothly. We reviewed on our expected responsibilities and behaviors, future upcoming events, packing and borrowing items from Don, and asked any risen questions that came to us. All of us learned the basics of being an ILCer and I’m fully prepared for more to come.

Getting Started

Despite the casual nature of the gathering, I found myself feeling nervous as I climbed out of my car on Saturday morning and made my way to one of De Anza High School's computer labs for an Ivy League Connection tutorial. I knew that Don would be teaching us about all of the basics that went along with being a part of the ILC, and a part of me was excited to finally get started. But another part of me was worried. This was the first event that I was attending as an official member of the ILC, and the gravity of the information scared me.   

The view as I pulled up to the site of the tutorial

Of course, within five minutes of the beginning of the tutorial, I began to see that my fears were totally baseless. Being in the ILC is a big responsibility, but it was clear that Don was there to help us navigate through the experience as smoothly as possible. He told us everything we needed to know, from what to pack to what to expect in the airport and in our dorms. Surprisingly, all of this information actually made me more calm, since, as is true in most situations, I realized that it was not as intimidating as I had expected.

During the tutorial, we also learned the logistics about how to create successful blogs, which Don assured us would be spending a lot of time on leading up to and during the summer. Personally, I like the idea of sharing what I'm going through during my time in the ILC. As someone who finds it easiest to articulate themselves on paper (or in this case, on a screen), it is comforting to have the ability to express my perspective on this process. However, I'm still somewhat wary of my photography skills.

The tutorial took place on a beautiful May day, which was hopefully a good omen

Ultimately, I'm very glad that Don hosted this tutorial. I think it benefited me in a lot of ways in addition to learning essential information about the Ivy League Connection process. Now, without the disconnection of email communication and online applications, everything seems much more real to me. After all, we leave for UPenn in only six weeks! After Saturday, I feel completely prepared for my time on the East Coast and all of the ILC gatherings in the near future.

Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That

After hitting the snooze button for what seemed hours, I lazily got up. Mornings are not my thing but none the less, I was excited for the tutorial that marks the official beginning to the University of Pennsylvania. I like to call it the second phase of the Ivy League Connection. 

My sister dropped me off in front of De Anza High school. As I walked in the computer lab, I saw Aimee and Mauricio sitting in the second row of computers so I sat with them. We later decided to move to another row so we could see the screen better which lead to many technical difficulties. Mauricio couldn't get his computer to turn on and I couldn't get mine to login. When Kamillah came she also had great difficulty with the computers but after that it was smooth sailing(kind of). 

Don gave us a small lecture in the do's and don'ts of blogging and being an ILCer. We did a little bit of blogging for which I wrote mostly gibberish and my fixation on the cookies and water I had in front of me which by the way were pretty darn good cookies. 

After we went outside to take some photos for our beautiful practice blogs. I didn't take many pictures because I don't like using my phone. This then turned into a small break that lead into the third part of the tutorial which was uploading files to MediaFire. this is went things went a bit south.

Various computers in the room couldn't access the website which caused many delays. Luckily, I was able to email my self the photos and insert them in my practice blog in a breeze. 

For the last part of our long meeting, Don talked about laptop safety and we got to ask questions that ranged from the ropes of traveling to the things we should bring in our luggage and loaner items. This was fun because we got to play with the laptop security cable and the loaner items Don brought to show us. 

All in all, today was fun and full of learning even though it was my second tutorial. I can't wait to got to the East Coast and show them what I'm capable of. 

Left to right: Mauricio, Aimee, Jackie, Me(Diana) and Edward