This week I attended the remaining EFNEP’s 55th-anniversary community celebrations in the Queens (First Presbyterian Church) and Bronx (Mott Haven Community) boroughs. It was truly inspiring listening to all the parent educators, participants, and community partners share about EFNEP’s influence on their livelihoods. By encouraging participants to eat a more nutritious diet, the program helped individuals change their lives with their own hands, decreasing the chances of predisposing health risks and leading healthier lives. Sitting there, I never realized how emotional nutrition could be. This program was the catalyst for many individuals, allowing them to seize control of their health and giving them a newfound appreciation and passion for nutrition. When lost and indecisive about the first step to take, EFNEP’s program and staff were the “lightbox” they needed to guide them into a better, fitter future. Just as EFNEP has reached the heart of its participants, I hope that I can assist in making the GLTTP (Grow and Learning Together Through Play) program be the guide needed to improve parent-child interactions and help their child flourish.
Besides the celebrations, I have completed an article draft encompassing the general outline of what the GLTTP program entails, and I hope to interview prior parent participants soon to write about the successes and potential improvements the program has made in their lives. I am also in the process of reading updated, relevant research on play and learning to possibly add to the GLTTP curriculum.
On Friday, I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the Friday cultural events for interns. I grouped with a few other girls working at Weill Cornell, and we viewed the exhibits from Mr. Daniel Kershaw’s, a Cornell alumnus and senior exhibition director, eyes. I did not realize how much thought and work went into the creation, lighting, and design of each and every exhibit presented in the museum. The degree, temperature, and space had to be an exact measurement to prevent the disintegration of the artifacts. To remain accessible for individuals with impaired vision, the fonts and labels had to be a certain size and distance away from the glass. Walking through the MET with Mr. Kershaw really allowed me to appreciate museums in a different light, and I look forward to exploring and learning more in future cultural events.