My Turn: New school year, new chance to learn, refresh
I don’t know about you, but this time of year makes me happy, nervous, excited, and sad.
I fondly remember the first day of a new school year starting. New teachers, new friends, and opportunities to learn and play sports. I can remember being nervous too, what if I didn’t get into a class with friends, what if I had that teacher that all the kids talked badly about? And you couldn’t help being excited about maybe a new-to-you outfit or bookbag. And now, looking back on those days, a bit sad that they are just a memory. This is the prime opportunity for me to suggest getting involved as a Gaston County School Mentor.
According to their website, you need to submit an electronic volunteer application, pick a school that you would like to serve, commit to meeting regularly with your mentee during the school day, attend a one hour training and orientation class and pass a criminal background check. All sessions take place during the school day on school property.
For those of you who just want the fond memories of school days, check the Gaston County webpages for upcoming sporting events. With the Women’s World Cup happening, football, aka soccer, for the guys, is a fall event, so keep the ball rolling. Or American football happens on Friday nights at the high school level. Supporting our local high schoolers is a good community thing to do.
And the start of a new school year is always an opportunity for the start of new habits and things for those of us who have finished formal school but are still ready to learn new things.
Are you intrigued by the weather? I certainly am interested in the subject. Are the patterns that we are experiencing novel or is this a recurrent trend? Only by research and study can we really understand our world. There are online courses for just about any subject you care to explore. Do you want to learn more about alternative energy? Many places in the world are really delving into renewables… wind and solar for sure.
Could you benefit from a solar panel? What is the life expectancy of a panel and how can you incorporate this free energy source at your home? What happens to that panel at “end of life?” Is this just one more item that will become a problem in our world to dispose? We have already witnessed the mess with plastics, and so far, there is still no good resolution to the vast world of plastics. We know the kinds that can and do recycle, the rest ends up in our landfill, while we wait for the plastic chemists to solve this problem.
What about the electric cars? Have you done any research into their viability? And what will we do with the car batteries when they no longer hold a charge? A previous article spoke of the dilemma of end of life for lithium car batteries. They must be returned to the dealer when it’s time to replace them. They cannot be disposed of in any other fashion as they have a major explosive/fire risk associated with them. If you are concerned with climate change and other events that we may be doing to increase the intensity of change in our world, time to research and study is now.
And as one last thought, a gem in our community, is our very own Gaston College… open for anyone to start or refresh a career. This school has a catalogue full of new prospects for young and not-so-young who want to learn a new trade or skill. This may be the time for a new start and time to “recycle" yourself into a new you or a new mentor to kids who need s some extra attention and help.
Nan Kirlin is the recycling coordinator for Gaston County.
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: New school year, new chance to learn, refresh
