The following is a guest blogpost written by PeerForward Managing Director of Finance, Shyla A. Ingram:
On a sweltering summer day in July, I found myself sitting on a bench outside the Columbia, South Carolina airport. I was sweating, uncomfortable, nervous, and questioning if I’d made the right decision by coming there. My destination was the University of South Carolina, where I would spend the next four days volunteering as a Writing Coach at one of PeerForward’s residential summer Workshops.
My mind was full of doubts as I climbed into the Uber. Who was I to advise young people on their personal statements for college? What if I said the wrong thing or gave them poor advice? I could ruin someone’s life. That’s the level of responsibility I felt racing toward campus. As the first person in my immediate family to attend college, I understood what was at stake for the Peer Leaders attending this Workshop. My own educational journey was delayed by over a decade due to a lack of information, assistance, and resources. I will never forget the feeling of absolute heartbreak and humiliation when my high school guidance counselor laughed at my college inquiries during senior year. She said it was too late for me and chided me for wasting her time as she rushed me out of her office; girls like me didn’t go to college.
Memories of that encounter filled my mind as I watched the lush southern landscape fly by. I felt my cheeks getting hot and my breath quicken as the details rushed back. Outside the car window, green kudzu vines carpeted the highway shoulder, winding their way around trees and phone poles. It reminded me how connected we all are, and my breath slowed. I felt the heat gradually draining from my face. My thoughts turned away from the past and moved toward the immediate future. I started to feel hopeful for the Peer Leaders I would soon meet and grateful that an organization like PeerForward existed to show them that higher education was for everyone.
That evening, I found myself in a classroom with fourteen other Writing Coaches (WC) and two seasoned Writing Coach Coordinators (WCCs). The WCCs were responsible for leading, training, and managing our team. As we introduced ourselves around the room, I was glad to discover that I wasn’t the only newbie. It was also comforting to hear the stories of returning volunteer WCs and know that everyone had the same doubts their first time around. I kept hearing a phrase repeated again and again, like a mantra… “trust the process.” I heard it several more times that evening and over the next three days.
After training, I returned to my dorm room and studied the Writing Coach manual like I was cramming for a test. One of the advantages of PeerForward’s four-day residential summer Workshops is that student Peer Leaders stay on a college campus and experience dorm life. Because I completed my college degrees later in life, I never had a chance to live in a dorm, so it was also my first opportunity to have that college experience. The immersion helped to ground me so I could focus on the task at hand, assisting Peer Leaders in developing their personal statements. I went to bed that night excited to meet the Peer Leaders assigned to my group and committed to the writing process I’d learned from the WCCs and the Writing Coach manual. I whispered, “Trust the process,” rather than counting sheep to fall asleep.
The energy on the quad the next morning was electric. Call-and-response chants rang out, echoing between the buildings. My hands were numb from clapping, but I kept them moving anyway until my group was called. We posed for a photo and then we were on our way.
Over the next three days, I facilitated various working sessions with my team where we goldmined for their personal statement theme and began the writing process. It was an emotionally intense experience for some students as they shared pieces of their story relevant to their statements. It was also emotional for me when I recognized pieces of my own story in what they were sharing. I couldn’t help but reflect on how different my journey may have been if I’d had a program like PeerForward at my high school. It made me even more committed to giving my all as a facilitator. What the Peer Leaders learned here, they would take back to their high school communities and help others. It was the very definition of paying it forward.
Community was a common theme throughout the Workshop. I found myself in community with other volunteers, many of whom were using their limited PTO time to serve and had been coming back year after year. The stories they shared gave me valuable insight into the organization and the powerful impact these workshops have on everyone involved. I saw student Peer Leaders forming a community with one another, making connections that would carry them through high school, college, and possibly
beyond. I experienced the greater PeerForward community’s warm welcome, encompassing volunteers, seasonal staff, program alums, student Peer Leaders, HS team advisers, and the dedicated PeerForward program and operations teams. Watching my fellow employees in action, I gained a greater understanding and respect for the work they do every day. It’s not hyperbole to say my heart grew in South Carolina.
The workshop experience that affected me most profoundly was the closing circle on the final day. All the Workshop volunteers form a circle in the middle of the room, holding hands and standing shoulder-to-shoulder, facing outward. The student Peer Leaders form a similar circle around the volunteers, facing inward with a few feet of space between the two groups. PeerForward program staff lead the session – walking the circular path between volunteers and Peer Leaders – while we each made direct eye contact with the person in front of us while listening to the reflective words on the facilitators. Every few minutes, each circle rotates slightly in the opposite direction, so a new set of volunteers and Peer Leaders face one another and make silent eye contact. The closing circle is a powerful exercise in gratitude, connection, and community. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room when it was over. It is an experience I will carry with me forever.
Soon enough, I was on my way back to the airport. Different thoughts filled my mind this time as the lush landscape flew by. I was grateful for pushing through my fear and doubt, for stepping forward despite all my trepidations. I’m writing this almost seven months after the experience and still processing what I gained. I often think about the Peer Leaders I worked with and hope they are all holding college acceptance letters in their hands. If even one thing I did or said during those four days helped them get closer to their goals, it was all worth it. Ultimately, it’s about community and doing all we can to lift one another.
Volunteer applications are now open for the 2025 Workshops. If you’re looking for a way to make a profound impact in a short timeframe and feel the connection of a powerful community – this is it!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shyla Ingram is the Managing Director of Finance at PeerForward. Her role is centered on providing strategic oversight and coordination of PeerForward’s financial operations to ensure success today and in the future.
As the first person in her immediate family to earn a college degree, Shyla understands the importance of PeerForward’s mission to unleash the power of positive peer influence to transform the lives of youth living in low-income communities by connecting them to college and careers.
