Meghan Mangrum

Birthdays aren’t only for the one being celebrated. Though birthdays normally involve toasts and cute cards with heartwarming notes, and fill the one celebrating with love and gratefulness…birthdays are also for their friends, for their family, for their loved ones and the ones celebrating them. I have several summer birthdays in my life – dear … Continue reading Summer Birthdays

There are those who inhabit the night and those who don’t. Some make their way home by midnight and curl up together within the lights and confines of a familiar, comfortable place. For others, midnight passes and they inhabit the wee hours of the morning – the hours when many places are closed and the … Continue reading Nightwalkers.

I wish I could be an undergraduate forever – not because I want to sleep in late and avoid paying taxes or living as a functional adult. I want to be an undergrad because I miss it. I miss being surrounded by people my own age constantly – people with diverse backgrounds and ideals and … Continue reading Professional Undergraduate

Today I reached 1,000 hours towards my AmeriCorps requirement of 1700 hours over the course of my term of service. According to the Corporation for National and Community Service’s website, "Since the program’s founding in 1994, more than 800,000 AmeriCorps members have contributed more than 1 billion hours in service across America." I have earned … Continue reading 1000 Hours.

AmeriCorps members have long days. Some longer than others depending on where you serve. At Apopka’s NDMVA site, members serve in various locations including local high schools, middle schools, elementary schools, colleges and a domestic violence shelter. Though my schedule varies slightly at the high school and for special events – this is a glimpse … Continue reading An Average Day in the Life of (this) AmeriCorps Member

One of my students lost a friend in a car crash this week. He wasn’t one of mine and didn’t go to our school, so I didn’t know about it until she showed me the news article. Sitting in class, staring at the computer screen, another one of her friends tried to cheer her up … Continue reading Hard Times in 5th Period

If you had asked me a month ago, I would have said 2013 was the worst year of my life. And it was bad – it was a rollercoaster of emotions and change and turmoil. If I never experience another year like 2013, I won’t complain. But each year has its good and its bad, … Continue reading Good Riddance 2013, here’s to 2014!

Two elderly black women sit together with short pencils and workbooks and packets spread in front of them. One woman has a composition book, where she writes notes in tiny, neat handwriting – conserving space, documenting things she should remember. They talk and laugh with a Hispanic man who could be their grandson and me, … Continue reading Scenes from a GED Class

Last week, University High School – my alma mater and the school where my younger sister is currently a junior – mourned the death of one of its own. Unfortunately, death seems commonplace in high schools today. Apopka High School, where I am serving my AmeriCorps term, lost a freshman barely a month ago in … Continue reading Thoughts on high school, adolescence and death