Fear The Turtle: AALEAD Heads to MD Day 2015!

By: Antwoine Johnson, MD Middle School Program Coordinator
Photos Courtesy of AALEAD students

Maryland we’re all behind you,
Raise high the black and gold.
For there is nothing half so glorious,
As to see our team victorious.
We’ve got the team boys,
We’ve got the steam boys,
So keep on fighting, don’t give in!
M-A-R-Y-L-A-N-D
Maryland will win

The MD fight song is iconic in the sense that anyone who hears it that has the pride and spirit of the University of Maryland, College Park, is automatically spurred on and encouraged to do great things. It is that same spirit and enthusiasm that is shared with those that visit MD Day, a celebration of what the University of Maryland, College Park is all about. From displays of the innovative accomplishments of the Engineering School to the melodic tunes of the Music School, everyone is showing their best during this day.

AALEAD youth from MD, both middle and high schools, had a chance to share in the UMD Spirit as they roamed the grounds of the College Park campus. After traveling from Wheaton to College Park, youth headed to the College Park Mall, a wooded and green area where the majority of MD Day was being held. There, they came into contact with various schools of the University, like the School of Public Policy and The School of Behavioral and Social Sciences, and learned about the majors. Also, they discovered how to get into those specific schools. They learned about the application process, the differences in undergraduate and graduate schools, and talked to advisors whose job is to counsel and guide students all the time.

During the events, AALEADers not only learned of other cultures, Asian cultures, careers, and mental health but also about each other. As it is rare for AALEADers to just be with each other, it was most rewarding just seeing old friendships be reignited and the interactions between high schoolers and middle schoolers again through participation in this event.

All in all, the spirit of MD was ever-present in the AALEADers.  They explored and envisioned their futures as they looked at those who have gone through what  they have gone through and have come out on top to be contributors to a future that they are building with their own hands.