GABRIEL HERRERA, SENIOR CLASS PUBLICITY 2020- 2021
HOW DID I GET HERE?
AN EXAMINATION OF THE PRESENT THROUGH THE LENS OF THE FUTURE
"he who awaits much can expect little"
- Gabriel Garcia Marquez Just another reason to be spontaneous. Many of Marquez's ideas deal with being old and growing old, but he proposes the best way to avoid this is by always pursuing your dreams, and now! You can't wait to achieve your goals because tomorrow is never guaranteed. We only have today to look forward to and ourselves to hold accountable . |
"write what should not be forgotten"
- Isabel Allende This quote reminds us so eloquently what Hamilton tells us in its final number, when you're gone, who will tell your story? and how will they tell it? Allende reminds us that we are the only true bearers of our own history, and the act of recording what should be remembered is a deeply personal and necessary choice to continue the well-functioning of society. |
"the most beautiful part of your body is where it's headed"
-Ocean Vuong I think that this quote is not only empowering ion learning how we operate in these temporary vessels of body, but also to remind ourselves of the frivolity of the smallest details while keeping our hearts, eyes, and minds focused on the future. While we are obsessed with the now: our appearance, our bodies, our self-esteem, we should also consider where we are moving in life. |
create a consistent theme on our social media pages, expand my design portfolio
PT I: With most of our events now occurring online, I think that our class’s social media presence now is more impactful than ever. I want our social media to reflect the values of Ripon High and serve as a fun escape for students, achieved by cohesive design. PT II: Through strict maintenance and regulation, I have ensured that our social media pages fit my standards. Although they may have not contained the quantity of which I had expected, I am surprised with how much growth our social media has experienced. In preparation for our mock interview, I complied my graphic designs from the year and I was pleasantly surprised with how much I had completed and the quality of my work. Conversely, I am not as pleased with the breadth of my portfolio, but I am satisfied with the quantity of work I have produced.
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incorporate the wants of the senior class to make this year a memorable year, and not just because of coronavirus
PT I: This program is a service-based program, and while we do what we believe we do what the people need, I think there is also a space for what people want. While providing for needs rather than wants will eventually produce positive feedback, focusing on small wants will give instant satisfaction, gaining the trust of our audience. At our class reunions, I want the class to remember how fun their senior year was. PT II: With this goal I did not have the foresight to see how it would connect to the previous goal I had set for the year. However, in a time of isolation and social distancing, growing our social media presence through measured and controlled expansion has aided in the development of a heightened class participation. I believe that our efforts through social media have generated conversation and facilitated class bonding.
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become nocturnal (for a week at least)
PT I: This is something that’s just on my bucket list, I think it would be fun. Like imagine being like a vampire or a bat. I think it would be an interesting way to change my perspective and to really reevaluate the things that I am fortunate to have. In a world of darkness, how could I find the light within myself? PT II: I had the opportunity but I did not take advantage of it. This is something I have to live with everyday, that I did not utilize my possibly one chance to be nocturnal. As I reexamine this goal, I realize that it draws me further away from my missions and values. Being nocturnal requires me to neglect my daytime responsibilities and lean into solitude, a practice that may be refreshing in a time of distress, but potentially isolating when unnecessary.
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join (start?) a book club
PT I: An easy goal. Something that I do regularly already (reading) combined with a simple agreement to a membership. I just wanna be able to share my feelings in an academic setting. The question could be raised that this isn’t really a goal, more of a box to check, because it's not challenging. The way I see it, though, is to have some attainable, achievable goals to encourage myself to continue on my goal-setting journey. PT II: It has been difficult in the context of the pandemic to find groups that are open to new memberships, and in the context of the 21st century, it is difficult to find groups of young people who are down to read. I am aware, however, of organizations I can potentially join, and have even participated in a virtual podcast book club!
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build and refine routines that allow space for spontaneity and consistency for improvement
PT I: Consistency is definitely something I struggle with because it is at odds with my spontaneous and fluid approach to life. However, I do recognize its benefits. Consistently bulbs practice and resilience, and when combined with thought, yields the most effective results. I hope that throughout my life, I can create these routines and rituals that aid me in completing whatever goal I have to accomplish next. PT II: I have integrated new routines into my daily schedule that help me to stay sane and maintain homeostasis. Complimented by a renewed allowance to break routines, I am able to stay flexible in my day to allow happiness. For example, my to-do lists have become rough lists of ideas rather than a hard and fast agenda. I can alter my day to serve and fulfill my personal interests and happiness. Prioritizing myself and service has changed how I view the time and attention economy.
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stay up to date with the trends 😎
PT I: I believe that the youth will always be the source of progressive change and it is my goal to lean into what they have to say. While having the capacity of so much good, young people are often limited by the opportunities they are delegated. I want to be an advocate for the young as so many role models have been for me now. PT II: Through the accomplishment and hard work on my part, I earned the title of best dressed. This is not a responsibility I take lightly. It has given me the motivation and drive to want to present the best version of myself. Brendan Lan, Ripon High alumni by invitation, has brought it to my attention that to earn the complexity point on this FRQ, I must address nuance and shift in tone and contrast. With this in mind, I must qualify my previous hypothesis. staying up to date with the trends draws me away from my values and encourages homogeny and spite. I want to end the race wars in this nation, and qualifying my argument will help me to end ageism.
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Zoe Barba
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I've been reading a lot of books about healing the relationship between religion and self and reclaiming spirituality. Growing up in the Catholic Church, I had come to view religion as negative. THE Zoe Barba has been an influential role in showing me the beauty of faith. Even when she's trying to be funny, Zoe's positive outlook and optimistic disposition encourages me in the mundane and in the larger than life. In Zoe I have also found a creative equal, someone who is so tuned into the same aesthetics and design practices as I am. I really enjoy anything I create with her. She has taught me more than I thought I was capable of learning: how to be faithful, how to be a better artist and friend.
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Mountain goats are solitary and balanced creatures. I don't even have to mention that I'm a Capricorn, the sea-goat, but I'm not sure how in-tune I am with my emotions to embrace the water part of myself. Other similarities between me and the mountain goat may be not be purposeful, like our matching flowing locks that grow out of control, but mountain goats' isolation is not accidental. By evolution or necessity, some of the best fruits of nature are found in supposed solitude. When the body is truly away from other beings, we learn how to be at peace with itself. On a comical note, the innate balancing act of a mountain goat's life is precariously posed as a catastrophe. They seem to choose to build their lives on the precipice of hardship or death. I find that I often work and live best in times of stress. When the only other option is death, there is no choice but to persevere. Is this the healthiest way to live? Probably not. Freshman year my inner animal Compared to freshman year, I've accepted some of the realities of life. Life is not a flat pasture with verdant feeding for me to graze. Instead, we preside on a harsh mountainside cliff with sparse opportunity and only one way to go: up.
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Mountain Goat
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1. What did you choose to do for your final and why? Normally I complete community service this time of year with Gracie and Kate at Gracie’s grandma’s friends’ retirement community. We always have lots of fun and it was a bit sad that we continue that tradition this year. However, I had come across some money after helping my grandma move and I thought it would be nice to pay it forward. Mindful of this assignment approaching, I stored the money so that I could spend it on a family in need. I had heard about the difficulty in getting a tag from the FFA Giving Tree and found out there weren’t any myself. After trips to ACE and Tractor Supply Co. resulted in empty trees, I was beginning to become worried. Thankfully, Jaydin provided a similar alternative to buying a gift. I decided to buy a Target gift card for a person in need with her grandmother’s homeless shelter that she volunteers at. 2. Describe the process that you went about in getting your final completed. First I tried looking for gift tags on Giving Trees in Ripon. When I couldn’t find any, I was glad that I was offered an alternative to the FFA project. My mom and I went to Target on a normal grocery run and while there I bought a gift card for $15. I chose the one that said "Happy Holidays" on it because it was the cutest and skewed secular among the Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmases. Then, I dropped it off at Jaydin’s house this morning, where she said she would take care of the rest. |
3. What was the emotional impact on you in completing your final?
This holiday season will be a difficult one. Many families in dire financial situations may not be able to put presents under the tree or may not be able to gather in the first place. More important than any gift, I am thankful for my family and that we’re all together. I know my donation isn’t enough to make someone less lonely, hungry, or homeless, but I hope that they can see some compassion this Christmas. Less emotional but still introspective, I considered how I view money. This was a piece of plastic that meant nothing more than points at a store and could buy someone happiness? Without those numbers on the back of the card someone couldn’t get a Christmas gift that year. I was thinking that I was very blessed to have the privilege to give, but reconsidering that, giving is not a privilege. Giving is a part of loving, willing the good for others by whatever means possible, and that is rarely monetary. My privilege existed in my financial capabilities and why should people get credit for that? I really want to work on honoring people for the fact that they love, not how they show it. 4. Was this assignment valuable? Why or why not? At first I was thinking, “what can possibly be the emotional impact of buying a gift card and dropping it off at Jaydin’s house?” but J.J. Francis always encourages me to go deeper. Through this reflective writing assignment, this final has reminded me to be grateful and express my gratitude and that each of these practices leads to the other, each equally beneficial. After looking past things on the surface level, I could really appreciate how I showed compassion. I am very grateful and lucky to have the life that I have and I am excited to continue sharing parts of it with those who need it. |
I can’t make this up and I don’t even want this to be true but I think I’ve gone crazy. Also, literally every situation I go through and the daily images of life bring to mind a Taylor Swift lyric or a word sets off a song in my head. I could go on about the internalized que of albums in my mind but that’s not what this is about. Pulling a classic Taylor move, I’ve had to completely reinvent myself this quarantine and I don’t know if it’s for the better. I think I make the comparison to Taylor Swift because it's out of the necessity of survival. I’ve been aloof and indifferent and it’s not who I was or who I want to be. I’ve filled out eight pages of my journal and read four books this month, I should feel more cultured but my mind contorts every good intention until I look down with tints of elitism. I don’t care about what I look like but I care how I look doing it. I think that I’m allowed to be cranky but I boil it down to hormones. And that I can be dumb as a teenager but I’m going to a fat university of the bureaucrats so I have to be mature to cure cancer. I don’t even know what I’m talking about. But I know that Leadership is a constant in my life like the variable c in calculus that needs to be end each differentiated equation but sometimes I forget to put it in there. The people in Leadership and the principles I’ve learned remain even if I forget that they’re there. When I let myself float in the clouds Leadership grounds me. The people are always here to help me and I just need to let myself be helped. (also btw morty i know this sounds very dramatic and it isn’t necessarily how i feel, but this is just how my writing comes out sometimes. it doesn’t really address the prompt completely but it feels very true.)
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ROLLERBLADING
The $50 used rollerblades I bought last summer have been a vehicle of joy. The most gratifying part of this activity is how little pressure it involves. Many of my hobbies have become commodified, so its relieving to have something that I like to do that is purely for my own enjoyment. In this mindset, I feel comfortable and productive making mistakes. Rather than missteps that will stray me away from my goals, I realize the purpose and necessity of mistakes on the path of learning. This is also something that I can feel myself improving in and see the results of my efforts tangibly. It doesn't hurt (or maybe it does) that this is a physical endeavor as well. Staying active and spending time outside is important for my mental health and overall wellbeing. I love coming home sweaty and excited to go out again. To keep falling and to keep getting better. |
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✅ DO allow at least two weeks for publicity
✅ DO publicize through multiple mediums: social media, physical posters, text chains, word of mouth ✅ DO create social media posts that allow for user interaction and engagement, allow the class to involve themselves as much as possible to achieve consensus and earn trust ✅ DO receive feedback on your designs, graphics, and posts. this allows the officer team to identify any problems or mistakes that you may not have noticed, criticism is an important part of any creative process. |
❌❌❌
❌ DO NOT allow others to post on the official social media account often, doing so creates disjointed messages that lend less to the cohesion of the page and the clarity and effectiveness of your purpose
❌ DO NOT oversaturate your publicity. there is a fine line between concentrated outreach efforts and too much social media traffic that clogs viewers' feeds and makes your messages seem like spam. ❌ DO NOT put off structural projects until the last minute! making structures sturdy, especially with creative and ambitious shapes and forms, is difficult and time-consuming. don't be afraid to ask for help! ❌ DO NOT be afraid to ask for help! even if this is your job, the officer team is here to help with all things creative! |
THANK YOU CARDS
After anyone provides anything to you or your team, expected or not, it is imperative that they are sent a detailed thank you card. This document should be lengthy and detailed, beginning with what they are being thanked for and a simple thank you, and then showing how their contributions to a larger project was crucial in your success. Doing so builds trust between you and the person who has helped you, establishing a professional reputation that solidifies their actions by cementing their participation in your success. Besides the professional requirements for expressing thanks, showing gratitude is an important part of your mental wellbeing. Demonstrating gratitude helps you to feel more centered and mindful of your purpose. Gratitude recognizes that no one is completely self-made, acknowledging your own humility and accelerating your understanding of yourself and the world. |
ZOOM ETIQUETTE
Leadership was the first ever Zoom meeting I attended, and throughout the course of the quarantine, the most time I spent on virtual meeting platforms was with the Leadership class. After having interacted in this professional context in most of my Zoom meetings, I learned a lot myself about how to create professional environments online. The hallmarks of human interaction are still important on screen, like eye-contact and clear speaking and active listening. However, human interaction is not directly replicated by a screen and pixels. Certain accommodations like muting yourself while others are speaking helps ensure quality of the call. Making sure that you are not fidgeting and sitting still and engaging with the speaker is another way you can actively listen during Zoom Meetings. By doing my own research, I learned how to best provide a well-lit environment for my calls, with a blank, neutral background, of course. |
I think a Taylor Swift song is appropriate here.
Because these things will change Can you feel it now? These walls that they put up to hold us back will fall down This revolution, the time will come For us to finally win And we’ll sing hallelujah, we’ll sing hallelujah |
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