Alicia Cowern

Allison Jackson-Frasier

HDF413

Shadowing Experience: Rhody Rhapsodies

On January 29th, Jessi lead a retreat with the Rhody Rhapsodies, a musical organization on

campus. Connor, Jedd, and Rachael were the facilitators for the day while Denzel and I were shadowing.

The goal for the retreat was fostering community building in hopes their strengthened bonds would

produce better results for the their group. They were also preparing for the International Competition of

Collegiate A Cappella and were hoping to utilize retreat time to streamline their social and musical

expectations for both the group and each individual member. When it came time for planning the retreat

we knew our activities would need to reinforce the groups goals as well as maintain the groups attention

and seriousness. Our retreat was held in the morning thus we started with a couple energizers to spark

the liveliness of the group transitioned into a couple activities centered around team building, critical

thinking, and conflict resolution, and closed with a quick debrief of the retreat.

We started this retreat with evolution. By starting with an energizer, we were able to get the

group members awake, moving, and ready for the day before diving into more challenging activities. This

allows the group to start feeling comfortable with one another as well as fills the room with laughter and

positive vibes. We followed this with the group contract. This provided the group with a visual

representation of their goals while allowing the members to verbally recognize their goals, to themselves

as well as their peers. This activity allowed the Rhody Rhapsodies to express what they each brought to

the group and gave the members a chance to compliment someone else in the group. Although all the

members did not know each other that well, they were able to complete the contract with ease and it

became clear they were open to sharing without hesitation.

 Next, we moved into another energizer, Captains Coming. We decided the group could use

another energizer because it was a Saturday morning and we wanted to ensure we had their full attention

and involvement for the rest of the retreat. Following Captains Coming, we had the group work on what

we called the Magic Carpet. This activity proved to be quite challenging for the group.

In the beginning, their communication was flowing effortlessly but as time wore on tensions

among members began to rise and communication seemed to come to almost a complete stop. Some

members were left completely in the dark because they had been blind folded and their teammates were

forgetting to involve them in the conversation. As facilitators, we were responsible for holding the group

accountable for all mistakes by either asking them to restart whenever someone fell off the tarp (Magic

Carpet) or by asking them to give us something, ie blindfold someone, sing to us, etc. The level of

challenge of the activity seemed to be almost too much for this group as they often stopped moving/

working all together on numerous occasions.

In an effort to alleviate some of the pressure from the group, about half way through the activity

we gave them a minute to step off the carpet, devise a new plan, and then resume play once again from

their original positions on the tarp. Although their planning did not provide any change, it was an

excellent moment for us, as facilitators, to observe each of their roles as leaders and how well/not well

they worked together under pressure. During the debrief, we made sure to ask questions that would lead

them to see their problem solving techniques as well as notice what went well versus what didnt go well

during the activity.

Following the debrief, we had originally planned to have the group try Pipeline but unfortunately

we took much longer on Magic Carpet than anticipated so we had to completely eliminate it as well as

change our closing activity from feeling cards to web. We believed this closing activity would create the

same atmosphere while remaining within the time restraint. Web allowed the members to once again
show appreciation for their peers like in the group contract except this time their commentary was

focused on the roles they each played and was specific to the work/ planning they put into the activities. I

think this method truly allowed the group to cultivate a sense of closeness especially because it

immediately followed such a demanding activity.

I believe all in all this retreat was highly successful. Our agenda was nicely balanced and well

thought out. All facilitators were on top of their game, attentive and always involved. Going forward, I

would try being more aware of time because although magic carpet had a significant impact on the group,

I strongly believe they wouldve more well rounded experience had we had time for Pipeline. Both

Pipeline and Magic Carpet cultivate the right atmosphere for conflict resolution and critical thinking but

Pipeline brings in a entirely new element. Personally I feel that Pipeline is less challenging and more

thrilling than Magic Carpet thus I believe the groups feelings of defeat and lack of confidence in their

togetherness wouldve diminished with the completion of Pipeline. This being said I do feel confident in

our ability to refocus their attention during the debrief from the negative outcomes to the positives that

can be taken away from the retreat.

As facilitators, I was very proud in our adaptability. Rather than panic about the time, we quickly

and orderly altered the agenda, and kept moving forward. This retreat taught me a lot about adaptability

and debriefing. Each leading facilitators [Jessi, Connor, Jedd, and Rachael] had their own debriefing

techniques, which allowed for Denzel and I to see a multitude of methods. At the same time, I learned

that no matter the method of debrief there are some core ideas to keep in mind: make sure to talk as little

as possible, the group members should be the ones drawing conclusions on the activity, they take away

less from a retreat and appreciate its meaning less if we spell everything out for them, silence is okay, and

when in doubt always ask why.

 As I said in the beginning, this retreat was made for the Rhody Rhapsodies. Understanding their

goals for familiarity among group members, a grown sense of closeness to one another, and an

established set of expectations for the group, we prepared an agenda specific to their needs. I think this

retreat not only went smoothly but also had a significant positive impact on the group. I am proud of both

the Rhody Rhapsodies for their maturity and seriousness as well as my fellow facilitators amazing service

efforts and their positive attitudes.