Cristo Rey/University of St. Thomas Service Program
Monday, March 9, 2009
During this academic year, students from the University of St. Thomas and Cristo Rey worked together to complete a unique service learning project, creating a newspaper for Cristo Rey.
Students from Cristo Rey meet their project partners from St. Thomas during their first gathering.
First Meeting
During the first trip, on Sept. 11, St. Thomas students gathered in the Cristo Rey auditorium for a pep talk from Dr. Carol Bruess for St. Thomas and Dr. Kris Melloy and Mr. Jeb Myers from Cristo Rey.
“Welcome to our mission,” said Myers, who explained that most of his students wouldn’t graduate from high school and attend college if not in a structured setting such as Cristo Rey. “You are our positive peer pressure.”
“Our students will be better for working with you, and you will be better for working with them,” Melloy said, and Myers reiterated her point: “We want our students to mentor you, too.”
The first small group sessions with Cristo Rey students came in early October. Groups spent most of that hour and two subsequent hours getting to know each other and discussing everything from pop culture to concepts such as achievement, respect and freedom. They talked about their similarities and their differences.
As the students proceeded with their projects over the course of the winter and the fall, the boundaries began to fall and the word "We" was used a lot more in describing team projects.
Lasting Relationships
On December 19th, Cristo Rey students made the same trip over the river into St. Paul that their colleagues from St. Thomas had already made nine times. Cristo Rey students saw for their own eyes what is possible for them in the future through their hard work and dedication. The students shared a special holiday meal and talked about all that they have learned from each other in just a short amount of time.
Cristo Rey students are looking forward to working with a new group of students this spring and hope that the learning and sharing will continue.