PTSO Presentation

The Oct. 9th PTSO meeting was the first chance the Virgina Ball Center has had to represent ourselves as students and really talk about our side of the project. Four of the seminar's members, including myself, gave a four minute presentation. Each of us talked about an area that we were passionate about, and were able to accurately represent what we are hoping to accomplish both for the Burris community and for ourselves through this immersive learning experience.

Honestly, I don't think I could tell you what I said in front of that crowd. I'm always shocked by how nervous I am presenting to my classmates, and how my mind just switches over to business mode when I'm in front of a foreign crowd. I fell right into my groove and felt really comfortable.

The audience - small, but mighty in their question asking - was interested in what we were doing for their community, but also very interested in each of us as students. We talked our majors and how each of us chose to be a part of this seminar because we believe that it truly will change us as people.

The teaser shown at the end of our presentation definitely perked their interest. I was excited to see Dr. McGee's clip at the end, with him sitting in the front row at the meeting (he was my first interview for the project).

I'm incredibly proud of my co-presenters and hope to have more opportunities to share our excitement about our project.

The First Interviews

Sept. 12th- Dr. McGee & Mr. Dawson

After spending my entire summer interviewing members of my hometown community, I can honestly say I was itching to get back into interviewing. My interview with Dr. McGee actually followed Aaron L.'s time with Mr. Dawson, and I feel they both went really well. My nerves had settled after learning my way around lighting setup and sound checks.

Both interviewees were really positive about the community of Burris as a whole and that kind of optimism is contagious. Seeing a group of people rallying around something so rarely seen in "society at large," in this case a girls' volleyball team, is invigorating and motivating. You want to do all you can for them and it's difficult to maintain the balance between objective documentarian and wanna-be member of this mass of positive energy.

I think it's definitely important for all interviewers/interviewees to give themselves time to collect their thoughts and settle their nerves. We've discussed the value of silence and good listening skills in class multiple times. It's amazing what you can learn from each other just from the moments you choose not to say anything . . . The hardest part for me in that situation is not shuffling in my chair. My biggest fear is to be the person that ruins footage with noises from the sidelines.