For this week’s post, Bear POWER staff member and MSU Kinesiology faculty member, Zachary Burt introduces the newly developed student organization, Bear BLAZERS.
Bear Blazer will provide the majority of the individualized support Bear Power students receive on a daily basis. These peer mentors are undergraduate and graduate students who establish one-on-one relationships with the Bear Power students. Bear Blazers is a new student group that is coming to MSU to work alongside with the Bear Power program. The “Bear Blazers” engage the Bear Power students socially while eating lunch, working out, learning to navigate the campus, helping to prepare food, studying and many more activities. The Bear Blazers mission is to “Work hand in hand with Bear Power students, providing support and integration within academic and social settings, through shared experiences leading to individual outcomes that prepares both Bear Power and Bear Blazer students to be successful in their chosen career paths.
This group will help assist in the education and development of the Bear Power students. They are vital to supporting the Bear Power students help navigate campus life. The Bear Blazer will work to help the Bear Power students learn life skills that are not learned in the classroom. They are a peer support model that focuses on delivering life skills outside of the classroom as well as assisting in the class. Any student who wants to practice inclusion is welcome to become a Bear Blazer. The Bear Blazer will create a circle of support for the Bear Power students. These connections can facilitate natural inclusion of our students in the campus. This experience will provide a typical college social experience.
Bear Blazer is in the final steps of becoming an official student organization. The president of the student group is Josh Devine Devine23@live.missouristate.edu. Come fall we will begin to have Bear Blazer training sessions that provides the Bear Blazers with information about the students, the program, and strategies to support the students most effectively. Bear Blazers will use a peer support circle model. Each Bear Power student will have multiple Bear Blazers working together to ensure the Bear Power students’ success in their time at MSU. We will be having more informational meetings in the coming weeks, with a plan to have our first official meeting the week we return from spring break.
I am happy to answer any questions anyone has about the new organization Bear Blazers. My contact information is ZacharyBurt@missouristate.edu and my office number is 417-836-8481.