November 29, 2023 • 14 mins
In this Community Spotlight, we have a conversation about inclusion and belonging.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:04):
Hello,
I'm Callie and I’m Sara
and this is Community Spotlight
with Callie and Sara.
We are students in the College
and Career Studies Program at UK.
This radio segment
will spotlight
different things
in the local community each week.
Thank you for listening.
(00:30):
In this week's Community Spotlight,
we have been talking about inclusion
and belonging
and the importance
of having connections to other people,
both on campus and in the community.
These are topics
that are really important
in the college experience,
but also really important
in life in general.
(00:50):
And we hope that anyone
listening will think about
what belonging means to you
and why it's important.
To start off, I want to ask you all
what kind of activities
did you participate
in, whether that was on campus
or in the community recently?
Sara, would you like to share?
I went to the NESI meeting, the Boo Bash.
(01:12):
The NESI meeting and the Boo Bash.
Can you explain what NESI is
and also what the Boo Bash was?
The NESI meeting is
they do group sessions
for people to feel like
they are included.
Yes.
(01:32):
NESI,
for anyone who doesn't know,
NESI stands
for the Neurodiverse
Educational and Social Initiative.
So it is geared
toward neurodivergent students,
students who are either autistic
or otherwise neurodivergent.
And it is a group that gets together
and talks about different topics
once a week.
(01:53):
So you went to that this week
and what else did you go to?
The Boo Bash with Aaron and Will.
Can you describe
what happened at the Boo Bash
and what it was?
The Boo Bash was a way for
every student to feel like
they're part of the UK student community
(02:16):
to participate
in different activities
that they had there.
And it was a Halloween
themed event, right?
That's why it was called Boo Bash?
Yes, it was.
Did you feel included
in those activities?
Were those accessible and welcoming?
Yes, they were.
The NESI meeting was welcome in the way
(02:39):
that they're able
to address individuals
with sensory issues
and how those individuals can do
things to help manage their stress.
Yeah, that was a good meeting.
There were
there was a lot of conversation
about things
that students can do
if they're stressed out
and what kind of things,
especially that are common, common
(03:01):
stressors for Neurodivergent folks.
They gave some tips
about what you can do
to reduce stress
or some strategies for
dealing with stress when it pops up.
That was a good example.
At the Boo Bash,
it was welcoming for everybody
that wanted to be there.
They have like different snacks
(03:24):
and like activities like pumpkin carving
that Will and I did while we were there.
That was fun.
I thought that the jack o lantern
turned out really well.
I did too.
I felt as well when I saw your pictures,
when I saw the pictures that
you sent of it.
We were able to see it in the light
while we were there,
(03:45):
but it wasn't quite dark enough
when it was over to see the jack
o lantern lit up.
So yeah,
I had to had to take it
and take a picture later
after it got dark to send it.
Right.
So, Callie, what
activities did you
participate in recently?
(04:07):
CSF – like core group
- like bible study group…we’re
a smaller group and we usually talk
about things like friendship or jealousy.
Yeah, like small group discussions
that can be really good.
And do you have to share
when you're in those groups
or is it optional?
Only share if you want to or not.
(04:32):
I think that's good
when you have an option
because if you absolutely had
to, it might feel uncomfortable.
So the other place you went to
this week was bowling?
I had not been to bowling for a while
but feel back to it.
There are new people at bowling
(04:53):
to make a few friends there
– I just made friends
with them at bowling.
Cool.
Did you feel included
in those activities?
Did you feel like they were accessible
and welcoming? Yes.
Can you talk a little bit more about what
the CSF group spaces like
and why it's important to you?
(05:14):
Talking about friendship
means a lot to me
because I have already been making
new friends there at CSF.
To me
it feels safe
because you can talk about things
you do not want to talk about
with your parents. To me it feels good to
talk about things at CSF
because my friends are there.
(05:36):
Yeah, that's totally fair.
I think
we don't always want to talk
about everything
with our closest family member.
Sometimes we want to talk about things
with other people, like friends.
And Lee is also here with us
and Lee is a
student at UK
and thank you
for joining our conversation, Lee.
I'm curious
(05:56):
if you can share with us
some activities
that you participate
in like weekly
around campus
or in your community that are
that are important to you?
Of course, I think the
most important one to me
in the - at
this moment is probably
my acapella group.
It meets twice a week,
but unfortunately I'm
only able to go once a week
(06:16):
because I actually have
a class that meets on Tuesday night.
Some of the people in the group
I've been singing with for two years,
some people are new
and it's just a really great place
and it's kind of my balance
between school and like fun things.
So I really like it.
That's really cool.
I'm also really into music,
(06:38):
so I share that that value with you
and music
is a way for me as well, in fact,
I'm going to get together
with some of my music friends
this weekend
since it's going to be nice for a porch
pickin party,
since it will be nice enough
and warm enough outdoors to do that.
But yeah, it's
like another way
to share your interests with
someone is to just participate.
(06:59):
Kind of like, and Callie
was talking about
bowling
and Sarah talked about
going to a couple of events on campus
and sometimes going to those things
just gives you a little bit of a boost.
In general, I think.
What is it that you find
that is welcoming about being
part of a musical group?
My favorite thing about it
(07:19):
is that we
all come from very different backgrounds.
Some of us, our music majors,
some of us aren’t,
some of us are from Kentucky,
some of us aren't.
We really just get
a very wide range of people and
in our regular choir,
anybody can sing there.
So it's just a place
(07:40):
where anyone who enjoys music
and singing can just come together
and kind of share that love.
Very cool. Thank you.
The other thing I just want to ask is
how you all feel
that being part of a group
or being part of an activity,
how does that add
to the feeling of belonging?
Like why is it important
(08:01):
to have a sense of belonging?
Why is it important to you
to belong to a group or have those
those kinds of connections?
The reason
a sense of belonging
is important to people
is because
they can have a feeling of belonging
when they're participating in a group or
an activity that has to do with
(08:22):
what they're interested in.
Why it's important to me
is because
I have a feeling of belonging to a group
or an activity
that when I go to participate in
I can participate in it,
because it has to do
with one of the things I'm interested in.
(08:44):
Was there something
particularly about the event,
the Boo Bash that you went to
that matches your interest?
What,
how did that appeal
to one of your interests?
Well, we - you, Will, and I did
a, carved a pumpkin together.
Would you say that
Halloween is one of your interests?
(09:05):
Spooky season.
I would make one of my interests.
I think all through October.
You're right.
People
do tend to celebrate all things horror
and all things that are kind of what
what you all call spooky season.
So even though the event,
the Boo Bash was more snacks
(09:26):
and then carving a pumpkin,
but there was there was music
that was being played out there.
Some of the music was
from different movies.
Some of the music was monster music.
Some of the conversations
that ended up happening
were about horror films
and about things like that.
I think
just because that was the theme,
that was one way
that the common interests
(09:46):
that the three of us had together
kind of came out that way.
Like we're
not all into the exact same things,
but we found stuff to talk about
and we all found something
that we could agree on
to carve the pumpkin as.
What about you, Callie?
Why do you think a sense of belonging
is important to people,
or why is it important to you?
To me
(10:07):
I would say CSF and bowling too as well
so I can be motivated
and get out more
and get away from my parents and also
for me
to be more independent, which I am.
Yeah, I think it's totally fair to
to want to get away from the people
(10:28):
you spend the most time with
and sometimes switch it up and go
be around other people for a while.
What about about you, Lee?
Why would you say that
a sense of belonging is important to you?
I think it just gives
you kind of motivation
on your harder days
when you don't really want to do things
to know
that like people
are expecting you to be places
(10:49):
because they want to see you
just because
like they like being around you.
So I just think it just gives you
a sense of like friends
and just wanting to be with people.
Yes, I agree.
And one thing
that I've found, I'm curious
if any of you all have experienced this.
In groups that I belong
in, and I do have a few groups
(11:10):
that I belong to,
whether it's a music group or another
group of people who gets together
because of a shared interest,
is that I notice
while I'm doing that thing,
like if I'm with the music group,
I enjoy my time there
because we're playing
music and I love that.
Or if there's another group
that I get together
(11:30):
with where we have shared interests,
we have a good conversation,
kind of like Callie was talking about.
Like when you're comfortable
with a group of people
that you feel more comfortable
to talk about things
that you might not be comfortable
to talk about elsewhere.
And also similar to what Sara said,
if you're if you have shared interests
with other people that, going to events
(11:50):
where those kind of topics come up,
there's more of a connection
that happens.
So all of that is true.
I have found all that to be true,
but I also find
that when I have those connections,
even at times
when I'm not
spending time with those groups,
I still feel like I get the benefit of,
I’m trying to figure out
(12:11):
how to explain this.
It helps me while the group is happening,
but somehow it also helps me later
when I'm not at the group.
Like right now.
If I even stop
and think about my music
group friends or some of my other groups
I'm connected with,
I experience that feeling of belonging,
even though I'm not with them right now.
Does that make sense?
Like, do you feel like
(12:32):
it makes a difference in your day to day
mood, even during the times
when you're not at those groups?
Does it
give you something to look forward to
or that kind of thing?
I'm personally the kind of person
who really likes something
to look forward to.
So if I have like a lot of homework
one night, I could be like, “Well,
(12:53):
I have two more days
and then I get to go do this thing
that I really want to do.”
So I definitely agree with that.
Yeah, I often call that those carrots.
It's like
it gets you through the things
you don't want to do sometimes
because you're looking forward to that,
that thing that you do
or actually want to do.
I usually don’t do my own chores
(13:16):
even though my dad
still tells me to do it,
you know, even though I don’t want to
or I don’t feel like doing it because I’m
feeling lazy or whatever
and my dad still tells me to do it.
Does it make it any easier
(13:36):
to do those things
you don't
really want to do
if you know
you're going to get to do something else
for fun after you finish.
Getting away from my
dad after i'm done with my chores.
Yeah, that's one of the benefits
is that once it's done that,
no one's asking you to do it anymore.
(13:57):
Like taking out the trash.
That's just my weakness there.
That's part of it.
Yeah.
There are always things
that we don't really want to do,
but if we get through them,
we get to
sometimes do things
that we do really love to do.
It's a it's a balance.
(14:17):
It's about finding balance.
Well, thank you all for talking with me
about this.
In this week's Community Spotlight,
we have been talking about inclusion
and belonging
and the importance
of having connections to other people,
both on campus and in the community.
Thank you for listening.
(14:41):
This has been a
community spotlight with Callie and Sara.
Thank you for listening.
Hello,
I'm Callie and I’m Sara
and this is Community Spotlight
with Callie and Sara.
We are students in the College
and Career Studies Program at UK.
This radio segment
will spotlight
different things
in the local community each week.
Thank you for listening.
(00:30):
In this week's Community Spotlight,
we have been talking about inclusion
and belonging
and the importance
of having connections to other people,
both on campus and in the community.
These are topics
that are really important
in the college experience,
but also really important
in life in general.
(00:50):
And we hope that anyone
listening will think about
what belonging means to you
and why it's important.
To start off, I want to ask you all
what kind of activities
did you participate
in, whether that was on campus
or in the community recently?
Sara, would you like to share?
I went to the NESI meeting, the Boo Bash.
(01:12):
The NESI meeting and the Boo Bash.
Can you explain what NESI is
and also what the Boo Bash was?
The NESI meeting is
they do group sessions
for people to feel like
they are included.
Yes.
(01:32):
NESI,
for anyone who doesn't know,
NESI stands
for the Neurodiverse
Educational and Social Initiative.
So it is geared
toward neurodivergent students,
students who are either autistic
or otherwise neurodivergent.
And it is a group that gets together
and talks about different topics
once a week.
(01:53):
So you went to that this week
and what else did you go to?
The Boo Bash with Aaron and Will.
Can you describe
what happened at the Boo Bash
and what it was?
The Boo Bash was a way for
every student to feel like
they're part of the UK student community
(02:16):
to participate
in different activities
that they had there.
And it was a Halloween
themed event, right?
That's why it was called Boo Bash?
Yes, it was.
Did you feel included
in those activities?
Were those accessible and welcoming?
Yes, they were.
The NESI meeting was welcome in the way
(02:39):
that they're able
to address individuals
with sensory issues
and how those individuals can do
things to help manage their stress.
Yeah, that was a good meeting.
There were
there was a lot of conversation
about things
that students can do
if they're stressed out
and what kind of things,
especially that are common, common
(03:01):
stressors for Neurodivergent folks.
They gave some tips
about what you can do
to reduce stress
or some strategies for
dealing with stress when it pops up.
That was a good example.
At the Boo Bash,
it was welcoming for everybody
that wanted to be there.
They have like different snacks
(03:24):
and like activities like pumpkin carving
that Will and I did while we were there.
That was fun.
I thought that the jack o lantern
turned out really well.
I did too.
I felt as well when I saw your pictures,
when I saw the pictures that
you sent of it.
We were able to see it in the light
while we were there,
(03:45):
but it wasn't quite dark enough
when it was over to see the jack
o lantern lit up.
So yeah,
I had to had to take it
and take a picture later
after it got dark to send it.
Right.
So, Callie, what
activities did you
participate in recently?
(04:07):
CSF – like core group
- like bible study group…we’re
a smaller group and we usually talk
about things like friendship or jealousy.
Yeah, like small group discussions
that can be really good.
And do you have to share
when you're in those groups
or is it optional?
Only share if you want to or not.
(04:32):
I think that's good
when you have an option
because if you absolutely had
to, it might feel uncomfortable.
So the other place you went to
this week was bowling?
I had not been to bowling for a while
but feel back to it.
There are new people at bowling
(04:53):
to make a few friends there
– I just made friends
with them at bowling.
Cool.
Did you feel included
in those activities?
Did you feel like they were accessible
and welcoming? Yes.
Can you talk a little bit more about what
the CSF group spaces like
and why it's important to you?
(05:14):
Talking about friendship
means a lot to me
because I have already been making
new friends there at CSF.
To me
it feels safe
because you can talk about things
you do not want to talk about
with your parents. To me it feels good to
talk about things at CSF
because my friends are there.
(05:36):
Yeah, that's totally fair.
I think
we don't always want to talk
about everything
with our closest family member.
Sometimes we want to talk about things
with other people, like friends.
And Lee is also here with us
and Lee is a
student at UK
and thank you
for joining our conversation, Lee.
I'm curious
(05:56):
if you can share with us
some activities
that you participate
in like weekly
around campus
or in your community that are
that are important to you?
Of course, I think the
most important one to me
in the - at
this moment is probably
my acapella group.
It meets twice a week,
but unfortunately I'm
only able to go once a week
(06:16):
because I actually have
a class that meets on Tuesday night.
Some of the people in the group
I've been singing with for two years,
some people are new
and it's just a really great place
and it's kind of my balance
between school and like fun things.
So I really like it.
That's really cool.
I'm also really into music,
(06:38):
so I share that that value with you
and music
is a way for me as well, in fact,
I'm going to get together
with some of my music friends
this weekend
since it's going to be nice for a porch
pickin party,
since it will be nice enough
and warm enough outdoors to do that.
But yeah, it's
like another way
to share your interests with
someone is to just participate.
(06:59):
Kind of like, and Callie
was talking about
bowling
and Sarah talked about
going to a couple of events on campus
and sometimes going to those things
just gives you a little bit of a boost.
In general, I think.
What is it that you find
that is welcoming about being
part of a musical group?
My favorite thing about it
(07:19):
is that we
all come from very different backgrounds.
Some of us, our music majors,
some of us aren’t,
some of us are from Kentucky,
some of us aren't.
We really just get
a very wide range of people and
in our regular choir,
anybody can sing there.
So it's just a place
(07:40):
where anyone who enjoys music
and singing can just come together
and kind of share that love.
Very cool. Thank you.
The other thing I just want to ask is
how you all feel
that being part of a group
or being part of an activity,
how does that add
to the feeling of belonging?
Like why is it important
(08:01):
to have a sense of belonging?
Why is it important to you
to belong to a group or have those
those kinds of connections?
The reason
a sense of belonging
is important to people
is because
they can have a feeling of belonging
when they're participating in a group or
an activity that has to do with
(08:22):
what they're interested in.
Why it's important to me
is because
I have a feeling of belonging to a group
or an activity
that when I go to participate in
I can participate in it,
because it has to do
with one of the things I'm interested in.
(08:44):
Was there something
particularly about the event,
the Boo Bash that you went to
that matches your interest?
What,
how did that appeal
to one of your interests?
Well, we - you, Will, and I did
a, carved a pumpkin together.
Would you say that
Halloween is one of your interests?
(09:05):
Spooky season.
I would make one of my interests.
I think all through October.
You're right.
People
do tend to celebrate all things horror
and all things that are kind of what
what you all call spooky season.
So even though the event,
the Boo Bash was more snacks
(09:26):
and then carving a pumpkin,
but there was there was music
that was being played out there.
Some of the music was
from different movies.
Some of the music was monster music.
Some of the conversations
that ended up happening
were about horror films
and about things like that.
I think
just because that was the theme,
that was one way
that the common interests
(09:46):
that the three of us had together
kind of came out that way.
Like we're
not all into the exact same things,
but we found stuff to talk about
and we all found something
that we could agree on
to carve the pumpkin as.
What about you, Callie?
Why do you think a sense of belonging
is important to people,
or why is it important to you?
To me
(10:07):
I would say CSF and bowling too as well
so I can be motivated
and get out more
and get away from my parents and also
for me
to be more independent, which I am.
Yeah, I think it's totally fair to
to want to get away from the people
(10:28):
you spend the most time with
and sometimes switch it up and go
be around other people for a while.
What about about you, Lee?
Why would you say that
a sense of belonging is important to you?
I think it just gives
you kind of motivation
on your harder days
when you don't really want to do things
to know
that like people
are expecting you to be places
(10:49):
because they want to see you
just because
like they like being around you.
So I just think it just gives you
a sense of like friends
and just wanting to be with people.
Yes, I agree.
And one thing
that I've found, I'm curious
if any of you all have experienced this.
In groups that I belong
in, and I do have a few groups
(11:10):
that I belong to,
whether it's a music group or another
group of people who gets together
because of a shared interest,
is that I notice
while I'm doing that thing,
like if I'm with the music group,
I enjoy my time there
because we're playing
music and I love that.
Or if there's another group
that I get together
(11:30):
with where we have shared interests,
we have a good conversation,
kind of like Callie was talking about.
Like when you're comfortable
with a group of people
that you feel more comfortable
to talk about things
that you might not be comfortable
to talk about elsewhere.
And also similar to what Sara said,
if you're if you have shared interests
with other people that, going to events
(11:50):
where those kind of topics come up,
there's more of a connection
that happens.
So all of that is true.
I have found all that to be true,
but I also find
that when I have those connections,
even at times
when I'm not
spending time with those groups,
I still feel like I get the benefit of,
I’m trying to figure out
(12:11):
how to explain this.
It helps me while the group is happening,
but somehow it also helps me later
when I'm not at the group.
Like right now.
If I even stop
and think about my music
group friends or some of my other groups
I'm connected with,
I experience that feeling of belonging,
even though I'm not with them right now.
Does that make sense?
Like, do you feel like
(12:32):
it makes a difference in your day to day
mood, even during the times
when you're not at those groups?
Does it
give you something to look forward to
or that kind of thing?
I'm personally the kind of person
who really likes something
to look forward to.
So if I have like a lot of homework
one night, I could be like, “Well,
(12:53):
I have two more days
and then I get to go do this thing
that I really want to do.”
So I definitely agree with that.
Yeah, I often call that those carrots.
It's like
it gets you through the things
you don't want to do sometimes
because you're looking forward to that,
that thing that you do
or actually want to do.
I usually don’t do my own chores
(13:16):
even though my dad
still tells me to do it,
you know, even though I don’t want to
or I don’t feel like doing it because I’m
feeling lazy or whatever
and my dad still tells me to do it.
Does it make it any easier
(13:36):
to do those things
you don't
really want to do
if you know
you're going to get to do something else
for fun after you finish.
Getting away from my
dad after i'm done with my chores.
Yeah, that's one of the benefits
is that once it's done that,
no one's asking you to do it anymore.
(13:57):
Like taking out the trash.
That's just my weakness there.
That's part of it.
Yeah.
There are always things
that we don't really want to do,
but if we get through them,
we get to
sometimes do things
that we do really love to do.
It's a it's a balance.
(14:17):
It's about finding balance.
Well, thank you all for talking with me
about this.
In this week's Community Spotlight,
we have been talking about inclusion
and belonging
and the importance
of having connections to other people,
both on campus and in the community.
Thank you for listening.
(14:41):
This has been a
community spotlight with Callie and Sara.
Thank you for listening.
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