Reflective Essay On Pgc Leadership

I was in the middle of evaluating a logarithm when the intercom crackled to life and requested I report to the office. I paused mid equation and navigated to the office to find out why. There were nineteen others there when I arrived. Our faces mirrored looks of befuddlement. Then a teacher walked in with the announcement. I was shocked to learn that I was one of the handpicked few to become a PGC (Peer Group Connection) leader the following semester. PGC is an extraordinary program at my school in which juniors and seniors are selected to serve as mentors (aka PGC leaders) to the freshmen class. The twenty chosen leaders are split up into boy/girl co-pairs in order to accommodate the incoming class of one hundred and forty kids. Each co-leader pair is in charge of a group of ten to twelve freshmen. We receive a two day orientation before the start of school and then meet every day for first period throughout the semester. We plan and

Gradually over the semester, the kids began to open up more. My co-leader and I truly invested time inside and out of the classroom. During one of the outreach sessions, a boy who had been labeled as a “troublemaker” by his peers showed up with a heavy backpack. It was not books, however, that were peeking out. Instead, it was clothes. He revealed that his mom had kicked him out of the house after a fight with his dad. The boy packed his items and stayed overnight with a friend. While many people put a label on him, they were unaware of the hardship that he faced at home. My co-leader and I began to learn of the other situations our kids faced. One struggled being in a military family and alienated herself from forming close bonds with others. Another was having difficulty staying close with her family after her brother’s death. There was also one girl who aspired to become a physician like me, but she did not have the support of her family or friends in the