During “Dead Week,” while students were frantically completing their final papers and preparing for final exams, Berkeley Connect in English held a study break, to give Berkeley Connect students a chance to enjoy some refreshments and each other’s company. Between bites, some of them shared their favorite memories from the semester:
Hayley Hooson said, “Last week we had a meeting on the topic of film and literature, which happened to be related to the thesis paper I’m writing. I didn’t expect that kind of overlap!”
For Megan Breazeale, the one-on-one interactions with her mentor were a highlight. “It’s nice to have that kind of connection with someone. Also, there are things we’ve talked about in Berkeley Connect that have helped me with essays and other things in class.”
Emily Kuo echoed her sentiments, saying, “I had a close relationship with my mentor. He read my honors thesis.”
Visiting the Bancroft was a high point for Alexander Florez:
“I got to touch a spiral notebook that belonged to Seamus Heaney at the Bancroft Library. There was also poetry and some of his class syllabi from when he taught here. Since I got to leaf through one of my hero’s notebooks, maybe now I’ll get his powers.”
Touring the Bancroft was a favorite moment for Natalie Guggenheimer too: “It was really cool — we got to see the First Folio!” She also commented on how Berkeley Connect helped her build community:
“I took Berkeley Connect my first semester as a transfer student. I really liked getting to share difficulties with other transfer students. It was really good to see that other people struggle, too, and some even had solutions to offer.”
Emma Schiffer also commented on how students could provide support to one another, recalling, “One time we did a living course catalog, and I had taken every class. I liked that I got to help people with that.”
Many of the students agreed that “just talking about literature and sharing those moments with others” was a pleasure. As the study break ended and the students headed back to their books, they seemed re-energized by the opportunity to interact with their Berkeley Connect community.
Posted by Madeline Wells, Berkeley Connect Communications Assistant