2022 Rural Fellows—Dawes, Sheridan & Sioux Counties

Faith Junck, Benoit Kayigamba Author

08/08/2022 Added

23 Plays

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Student and Community Fellows talk about the community development projects they worked on in Dawes, Sheridan and Sioux Counties, Nebraska during Summer 2022.

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[00:00:00.000](gentle music)
[00:00:03.179]Hi everyone, my name is Faith Junck
[00:00:05.790]and I am one of the interns here in Chadron this summer,
[00:00:09.300]getting to work with Nebraska tourism, ESU13,
[00:00:13.500]and Nebraska Extension out here in Dawes, Sheridan,
[00:00:15.570]and Sioux Counties.
[00:00:17.910]Living in Western Nebraska this summer
[00:00:19.710]has definitely been a fun experience.
[00:00:22.410]We've worked on many different projects
[00:00:24.690]and have accomplished much regarding different
[00:00:27.210]tourism aspects of the industry out here,
[00:00:30.046]along with working on mental health brochures and resources.
[00:00:34.230]We've worked hard on those types of projects
[00:00:36.150]but we've also had a lot of fun
[00:00:39.267]getting to experience Western Nebraska.
[00:00:40.980]And I've learned so much this summer
[00:00:43.380]not only professionally but also personally
[00:00:46.380]on what it looks like to be an inclusive leader.
[00:00:49.650]Whether that means I'm sharing about my cultural experiences
[00:00:53.027]back home in Eastern Nebraska
[00:00:55.530]or learning about the cultural experiences that my teammates
[00:00:58.620]have from living in Western Nebraska or Rwanda,
[00:01:01.470]or you know wherever we come from.
[00:01:04.440]This experience has really pushed me
[00:01:06.120]outside of my comfort zone in many different ways.
[00:01:09.330]And I've gotten to apply the skills that I've been using
[00:01:12.270]in class to gain that professional experience,
[00:01:15.027]but I've also gotten to apply the skills
[00:01:18.206]that I've been learning about in class
[00:01:19.849]to develop into a better leader
[00:01:21.090]and into a better community member and the whole nine yards.
[00:01:25.620]It's been a great summer
[00:01:28.249]and I've really enjoyed my time out here.
[00:01:31.680]My name is Benoit Kayigamba,
[00:01:33.390]a rising senior at UNL with the major in integrated sciences
[00:01:37.200]and a minor in information.
[00:01:39.364]This summer as rural fellow intern I created technologies
[00:01:43.980]that provide improved self guidance services
[00:01:47.340]to tourists as they come to explore Chadron.
[00:01:50.490]This includes digital walking tours and market trails.
[00:01:55.350]Also as an inclusive leader living in the community
[00:01:59.101]provided me with better perspectives on inclusion
[00:02:02.670]and diversity but most importantly it gave me an ability
[00:02:08.100]to understand what makes individuals unique
[00:02:11.460]and ensuring that they feel connected to the team.
[00:02:15.026]Besides projects, me and Faith with the help of
[00:02:18.660]community leaders we got introduced
[00:02:21.030]to the professional environment
[00:02:23.850]and also provided community service.
[00:02:28.929]I'm Jenny Nixon.
[00:02:31.170]I'm a University of Nebraska Extension educator
[00:02:34.440]in the rural prosperity area.
[00:02:36.960]And I really enjoyed being a community leader
[00:02:39.390]with students from rural fellows.
[00:02:42.600]Our interns came to Chadron this year
[00:02:45.822]and they were very clear with us
[00:02:47.301]about some of their goals
[00:02:49.822]and the things they wanted to learn and do.
[00:02:51.763]And I think that really helped me
[00:02:53.662]as a community leader to help grow them.
[00:02:56.310]And in fact they helped us figure out some new ways
[00:02:59.100]that we can do that in the future.
[00:03:00.990]So our community group has really thought seriously about
[00:03:04.410]what kinds of skills the students will gain here,
[00:03:07.170]not just what they are doing,
[00:03:09.385]but what skills will they take home with them?
[00:03:11.490]And I think allowing them to communicate
[00:03:14.190]with other leaders, to meet those leaders,
[00:03:16.620]and interact with them and also then to interact with
[00:03:20.610]community members whoever they might be in different ways
[00:03:24.480]helps gain confidence for them in the things
[00:03:27.450]that they're doing and communication skills that they will
[00:03:30.060]be able to take with them forever.
[00:03:31.950]So that's one of the things that we've gained this year.
[00:03:34.905](gentle music)
[00:03:37.486]Our rural fellows work will create long term impact
[00:03:41.520]in the Northwest Nebraska region as a whole.
[00:03:44.070]The barn quilt trail, the walking tours,
[00:03:46.380]the farmers market trail, and all of the other projects
[00:03:48.985]will help provide curated experiences for visitors
[00:03:52.920]and residents alike and provide additional opportunities
[00:03:55.541]to reach new audiences and keep them in the area longer.
[00:03:59.640]Working with the fellows the last several years
[00:04:01.890]has provided me with the opportunity to see the region
[00:04:04.680]from a new perspective.
[00:04:06.210]I live in a very rural area
[00:04:08.670]and the fellows have explored our hiking trails
[00:04:11.430]or learned to ride horses and rope.
[00:04:13.470]They've embraced experiences that we have to offer
[00:04:15.900]which is something residents sometimes forget to do
[00:04:20.850]The impact of the students helps create partnerships
[00:04:26.310]in the community.
[00:04:28.551]There are a couple people I've had the opportunity
[00:04:30.702]to work with and I've always wanted to
[00:04:32.243]'cause I knew we'd have good energy.
[00:04:33.562]And now we're on the same team.
[00:04:34.905]In addition to our main community fellows
[00:04:37.800]we do have kind of an advisory group
[00:04:40.080]of some other community leaders that help get this started.
[00:04:42.990]And we all work really well together
[00:04:44.580]because we're big picture thinkers.
[00:04:47.340]And that that helps us, helps us move our county forward.
[00:04:51.566]I have throughout this process, this is my fourth year,
[00:04:55.890]and I feel I grow a little more each year
[00:04:58.230]on the inclusive and, and my supervisor recognizes it
[00:05:02.250]in me as well when I, as I facilitate some meetings
[00:05:05.850]and she has noticed that change in my facilitation
[00:05:10.140]which is a great thing.
[00:05:11.460]So, so I'm able to include more people in,
[00:05:16.260]or you know being comfortable with a little silence
[00:05:20.040]and giving people an opportunity to say something.

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2022 Rural Fellows—Dawes, Sheridan & Sioux Counties

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