Submit Cumulative Reflection

Good Trouble Academy

Reflection Prompt

Use this prompt to help guide your reflection upon completion of the pillar

For the GTA pillars, please reflect on the ways you have engaged, experienced, and/or demonstrated the values and principles at the core of that pillar throughout your time as an undergraduate at John R. Lewis College and UCSC. For your reflection, please draw on relevant coursework, leadership experiences, community-engaged learning and research opportunities, and the materials specific to the pillar’s module. Be as specific as possible in describing what you’ve learned and how you’ve extended the commitments underlying each pillar. 

For Students graduating in the quarters of Fall 2023, Winter 2024, Spring 2024, Summer 2024 and Fall 2024, you are only required to write one cumulative reflection addressing all 5 pillars and include a minimum of 5 examples of academic and/or experiential opportunities (at least one per pillar).

Reflection Rubric 

You don’t necessarily have to make and/or see major changes to write a successful reflection. Successful completion of the pillar recognizes that changes can be small and incremental and that those small changes contribute to ongoing, collective efforts to move toward the larger shifts we hope to bring about.

Satisfactory: Your reflection shows that you have a strong understanding of the pillar's themes and how your relevant coursework and/or leadership experiences continue the work, values, and principles associated with the specific pillar. Your reflection also synthesizes your classroom, leadership, and community engagement knowledge and experiences in relation to the pillar’s themes and goals, drawing connections between historical examples and our current moment.

Needs improvement: Your reflection does not yet demonstrate a thorough understanding of the themes of the pillar and/or offers only minimal engagement with the main themes, values, and principles of the pillar. You may have some good ideas, but they remain at the level of superficial reflection. Additionally, your reflection would benefit from a more robust discussion of how your coursework, leadership, and/or participation in community engagement opportunities relate to the specific goals of the pillar.

Special Distinction: Your reflection is exceptional in clearly articulating not only a deep understanding of the themes, values, and principles of the pillar but also a nuanced synthesis of how your particular academic and co-curricular experiences demonstrate a full engagement with the pillar. In this way, your reflection also makes clear how your different experiences come together to shape your successes, how your contributions to social change develop out of those successes, as well as your contributions to multidimensional learning and leadership.