Team Rush National Advocacy Conference

[wnewton00]

As a mentor that has participated with our team the last 2 years I can say that out of outreach activities, the NAC is an experience not to be missed. It provides immeasurable benefits across many different levels.
The first year we attended it was very eye opening for the students to learn about problems faced by different educational groups and exactly how the government works with give & take, why the process takes so much time. After that first year the students were re-energized with the knowledge that they could make a difference and directed even more effort to local legislative efforts. It was great to see students that historically had been in build or drivers become confident & composed speakers advocating for what they believe in and to adults in what can be perceived as intimidating positions of power. Socializing and bonding with other teams during the process away from the high paced arena of competition was invaluable as well. We made a lot of new friends and look forward to seeing them each year. Within our own team, interacting with different team members in a new way really helped the coach, mentors & students too. During the year I would work mostly with the programming and web students and didn't have as much mentoring interaction with other students. During this trip we got to work together in a different aspect and learn more about our students' skills. I cannot pick 1 favorite part, the entire experience is fun & rewarding.