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HONORS EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROJECT PROPOSAL FORM

Complete this proposal prior to your projects start date and upload it in the UHP Database
(https://webapps.uc.edu/uchonorsstudent). Create a project (Add a new record) in the Tracking Project tab and then
upload your proposal document as an attachment. The deadline for submitting proposals is on the 5th of each month.
While the quality of the proposal is most important, strong proposals are typically 3-4 pages in length (single-spaced).
Please maintain the proposal format.
Basic Information
Full Name: Emmanuel K. Boamah
UC Email: boamahek@mail.uc.edu
College: CECH
Major: Health Promotion (Exercise & Fitness)
Title of Project: The Big Brother Program
Thematic Area: Community Engagement
Expected Project Start Date: May 1st, 2015
Expected Project End Date: August 1st, 2015
Project Information
1. Provide a detailed abstract of your proposed honors experiential learning project.
From May 1st through August 1st of 2015 I will be in Columbus, Ohio with a team of 4 exceptional college students
mentoring inner city children from the Horizon Science Academy ran by the non-profit organization I founded called
Youth Leaders of Ohio. The program will include character building, health and wellness, academic tutoring, and service
based collaboration with these kids. The group of 5 individuals already have a home in the Columbus area, so there will
be no housing changes. This will be the first Big Brother Program being put into effect by the organization, so there is no
specific itinerary of things that will be done on a daily basis; however, the following things have already been planned for
the program.
- We will be volunteering at 2 local churches (House of Faith Ministries and Columbus Presbyterian Church of
Ghana) for gardening and cleaning services twice at each building.
- We will be holding a car wash fund raiser and buy items such as toys and books to donate to the local childrens
hospital
- We will sit in on a presentation created for our organization by a former Ohio State Buckeye football player and
medical doctor about the importance of academic performance and personal choices
- We will work with a local personal trainer who will educate the kids about health, fitness, and wellness.
This project demands an immense amount of time serving others and learning about personal struggles when living in
inner cities of places like Columbus. I find it very necessary for me to do something like this because I want to change
lives. My future profession entails working with people from all different kinds of backgrounds and finding ways to help
them recover both physically and mentally, so in a way this is a head start. Also, instead of sitting around all summer, I
can go make Columbus a better place. Ive lived in inner cities myself, so I know what to expect, but the inner city
mentality needs to be changed in youth and thats what I intend to do.
The group of 4 leaders I have selected along with myself will have high levels of commitment. Meetings will be held once
a week for 1 hour to discuss the progress of the youth being mentored. This time will also be used to reflect on the
program as a whole, scheduling activities with the youth, struggles and changes they have noticed. All members must put
at least 7 hours a week into spending time with these kids. After this program is over we will write a one page reflection
paper on this entire summer experience and follow up with a final meeting to lay out our thoughts of it all.

Clearly and thoroughly address how each of the following elements will be exhibited in your work:
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within the Honors Thematic Area (identified above)

Relates, communicates, and works effectively with others towards sustainable social change

During this summer program, working closely with these kids and being a part of their lives will have endless
opportunities to effectively communicate and work in was to lead them towards a positive social change.
Volunteering to offer our personal services to churches, food pantries, and other organizations in the Columbus area
will allow everyone to make a positive impact in social change. By mentoring, I hope to see a change in the way the
kids interact with one another socially and break the stereotype they put themselves into just because of the area that
they live in.

Participates in community and understands own role as citizen of community.

My involvement in this program involves a large amount of service and community awareness activities. I will be
volunteering at multiple churches and food pantries with the kids to get a better understanding of what it means to be
a member of the Columbus community. We will tag along with any projects House of Faith or Columbus Presbyterian
has going on in their ministries to benefit the community. By working with the members in this city, I get to
experience what each individual goes through on a daily basis in an area like Columbus and see how it was different
in my personal experiences growing up in a similar area. Through the activities planned for the summer I want to walk
away from this experience understanding my impact on a community and gaining new ideas of service I can apply to
my daily routine.
3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories (include reference list, as appropriate)
A. This program relates to my goal because I am a Health Promotion major with an emphasis on
exercise and fitness, and also a custom track major for Pre-Physical Therapy. With this I plan on
pursuing my doctorates degree in Physical Therapy, and a masters degree in business. Being in the
healthcare field and business will demand that I work with a variety of different kinds of people, and
understand different cultures, social situations, economic, barriers, and so much more that I will
probably encounter in sometime of my professional career. Its essential that I am able to effectively
communicate with people no matter the situation that is at hand.
B. The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood
This book by David Simon and Edward Burns talks about the true struggles of living in inner city
neighborhoods on a daily basis. TV shows and movies do not completely capture the whole situation
of being a resident in an inner-city neighborhood, so reading this book was very beneficial. This book
has given me a good insight and heads up to the community Im about to interact with over the next
few months. Im glad I got to read this book before beginning this program, so I have an idea of what
to expect in some of these kids lives.
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pressroom/2013/brooklyn-castle-premiere-pov-pbs-indies-showcase.php
Inner-City child defies the odds is the second resource I will use to prepare for my experiences this
summer. It is an article of a junior high school that lets only 1 stereotype be put against him, and that
is where he lives. Other than that, they are far above the rest. Children in the school have found their
passions and talents and have used it in ways to stand out from the crowd. In this documentary, the
schools chess club becomes one of the most elite in the country. I want to take this with me into the
summer because its very important that I find out what the talents of these young kids are. If I can
help expose those talents, and show them why its necessary to be ambitious and pursue dreams in
those talents, theres a good chance that they can stand out from the crowd and do great things in life
with the gifts they have been blessed with.

4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity

What I bring to the group for the summer program is my leadership skills, organizational skills, communication skills, and
my past experiences of living in an inner-city. Ive grown up for a temporary amount of time in the inner city of
Columbus, so I will already know some of the struggles that some of these kids will talk about when we meet them. When
talking about my leadership skills, I founded this non-profit organization and have experience and have experience
leading other ones of similar goals in my past. I think of myself as someone who communicates effectively. Ive been
involved in an immense amount of networking organizations where I interact with people from all different kinds of
backgrounds, including medical doctors, lawyers, troubled youth, and former prisoners. The communication skills I have
acquired through my past experiences will help me better connect with inner city youth who typically have a hard shell
you have to get past first to truly get to know them. Additionally, I speak 3 languages. I grew up in a house hold where my
parents would speak in their native language of Ghana, and I also took Spanish for 2 years. In this specific area, students
from Ghana and Mexico are a high population, so I am hoping that I will get to apply my language experiences as well. I
want to open the mind of the kids, so I would like to have a culture day, where we would get to learn about different
languages and backgrounds.
5. Reflection
Throughout the summer program, I will be documenting all my experiences, thought, and feelings in a journal. I will
be recording what happened each day, reflecting on each event and what I can take out of it as I continue on in my
own personal life. After the summer program is over, I will transfer the recorded material to my Honors Portfolio so
others will have the opportunity to read about my experiences with interacting with inner city children for the entire
summer. Some questions I will base my reflection are:
- How did I make a difference?
- Did I apply my skills and knowledge to benefit someone?
- What can I take with me after the experience?
- Am I enjoying the program? If not, how can I make it better?
6. Dissemination
When I return from Columbus, myself and all other team members will write a one page reflective essay to put up on
the Youth Leaders of Ohio website. This is important to me because this organization is truly trying to make a
difference all over the world with exceptional leaders. I will go present at privileged upper class cities and high
schools on my experiences so we can spread the word on making these efforts to support those who struggle in inner
cities. It only takes 1 drop to create a ripple effect.
7. Project Advisor(s)
Mr. David Woodmansee
Youth Leaders of Ohio
Professional Advisor
youthleadersofohio@gmail.com
8. Budget (if applicable)
There will be no cost for this trip, since it is in my hometown. However, other expenses will include:
$200 for school supplies as a gift for the children. This entails binders, calculators, alarm clocks, journals, pens and more.
$150 for food when hosting the parent-student luncheon to kick the program off.