SLDP Group Projects 2020
Learn about the amazing projects that our SLDP students did through our program! Their utilization of integrated skills from our essential leadership seminars resulted in several powerful campus-focused group projects.
Fabulous Four Lights the Night
The Fabulous Four Lights the Night (Paige, Bailey, Shruti, Stacey) is a fun name for a greater movement to increase student safety on campus at night. The group paired with the UC Davis Campus Facilities Management to better understand the problem at hand and initially had the goal of hosting a quarterly version of the annual Campus Lighting Safety Walk in order to build a larger audience and increase awareness of the importance of student safety. In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, they were forced to halt progress towards their goal but shifted gears to focus on outreach. The group developed an informative online resource which compiled information from a variety of different sources: https://sway.office.com/duBPcyh1KuoLBzxS?ref=Link&loc=mysways. The group also conducted an experiment to test the effectiveness of the broken light reporting system on campus (information and findings are included in the above link). They also were able to meet with Facilities Management before the shelter-in-place mandate and share our ideas with them.
Resource Hub
The Resource Hub (Elizabeth, Carlos, Ryan) was established with the goal of empowering UC Davis undergraduate students by raising their awareness of opportunities at UC Davis. This is accomplished by providing them with information about extracurricular activities they can be part of. Participation in extracurricular activities is an effective way for students to explore options for professional and academic growth. At the same time participation allows students to work on an internship or project related to their major of study. To make sure students are fully aware of these opportunities, the group created a newsletter which explained in detail programs both on campus and off campus. Their hope is that the added awareness would increase the number of students taking advantage of their undergraduate experience and growing academically and professionally.
Universal Aggies
The Universal Aggies (Emily, Tim, Alexandra, Nayoung) wanted to create a project to learn more about international students and their potential academic struggles at UC Davis. Their original plans were disrupted by the closure of UC Davis and the beginning of online learning, but as they learned more, they came to the conclusion that international students may be disproportionately affected by remote learning. They decided to do more specific research on international students through a survey with questions on the impact of online learning and a focus group. Their hope is that their findings would assist these students in better adjusting to online learning and bringing them resources as they studied in different time zones.
The Liters
The Liters (Kayla, Ashleigh, Alexander, Christopher) established Adulting for Aggies, a resource that helps students get started with living on their own for the first time. Although there are many resources for students, it is hard to find one place to look for everything which can be very overwhelming and that is where Adulting for Aggies comes along. This twenty-one page resource booklet was created by four student leaders who wanted to make adulting easier for their fellow Aggies. The booklet includes sections on finding the perfect place, moving in, discounts, living with roommates, getting connected, and so much more. They have collaborated with and given their project to Aggie Compass for it to be possibly put on their website and shared with students in need.
Stress Busters
Stress Busters consists of four student leaders (Max, Joy, Shiyu, Cameron) with the main objective of providing resources for students and help them relieve stress –the concept of ‘students empowering students’. Originally with the intent of providing tangible items that can help relieve mental, academic, or financial stress, due to the precedent COVID-19 pandemic, the team was required to transform the project into something digital, but just as impactful. A 3-part newsletter series was first created, covering the contents of ‘Increasing Focus’ (Apps and Web Extensions to help students stay on track), ‘Time Management & Motivation’, and ‘Creative Study Spaces’. Over 25 Campus-wide organizations were contacted to help distribute the newsletters through Listserv subscriptions, Website postings, or Social Media influence. The team also created an Instagram page (@ucdavis_stressbusters2020) posting tips and tricks to help reduce stress. Stress Busters hopes that these resources can help out students in increasing their motivation to strive towards their personal, academic, and professional goals.