This year’s Student Service Program’s Orientation Retreat was a huge success, welcoming 29 student leaders of the Class of 2027! Throughout this retreat, students participated in team building, ice breakers and creative problem-solving activities, while learning about the mission of the Ryan Nece Foundation.
Entering day one of orientation, students walked into a meeting room as strangers, not knowing that they would make true friendships by the next day. To kick off the meeting, students introduced themselves and most importantly, their names, to the group. After getting familiar with the group, students shifted to an ice breaker – Getting to Know You Bingo! Having the chance of get out of their seats and strike up conversation with new people was a great introductory experience.
After students had “broken the ice,” they gathered to learn more about the Ryan Nece Foundation. Who started this foundation? What role will the Student Service Program play in carrying out the foundation’s mission? Students were able to introduce themselves to Ryan Nece through a virtual meeting which was followed by a presentation to dive deeper into the foundation’s missions and student roles. Our new class spent lunch talking with Student Service Program seniors and recent alumni, allowing us to pick their brains about what it’s like to be part of this program and how to plan for our futures.
The most exciting activities that happened on the first day of the orientation retreat were designing team T-shirts and participating in a sandcastle building competition! Teams were selected for these activities through a personality test characterizing students as blue, orange, green or gold. Students had a blast and shared lots of laughs during the T-shirt designing activity! They had the opportunity to work with like-minded peers in a group setting while using puffy paint and fabric markers to create a unique shirt.
After this and a few more team building activities, students headed down to the beautiful beach. Here, the sandcastle competition began! This challenge required students to get a little messy, creative and competitive! Overall, what this competition truly taught students was that each person can play a role in creating something and the diversity of everyone’s minds. Students stayed on the beach for the sunset and then headed back to wrap up the day. The first day of orientation really brought everyone closer as a team and to the Ryan Nece Foundation.
One the second day of this orientation, students transitioned from simply learning about leadership to being able to exemplify this quality. In teams, students worked together to craft a plan to solve one major problem facing the Tampa Bay Area: Homelessness, hunger, environment, or health. Not only did this allow students to work together, but it opened their minds to the importance of applying leadership skills to help their personal community.
For the next team activity, the same teams took their skills to sea! In an activity named “All Adrift,” teams worked together to gather a bundle of supplies they would take to escape a stranded island in the ocean. Finishing up this activity, students started wrapping up their orientation retreat experience; talking to their new friends, admiring their new t-shirts, and holistically taking in everything they learned about being a student leader. The Class of 2027 Student Service Program is officially ready to serve their community!
Written by Laasya Alampali, SSP Class of 2027
