Fellowship, as defined by wiktionary, is a company of people that shares the same interest or aim. It can also be a feeling of friendship, relatedness or connection between people.

As cliché as it seems after the alumni Kenan Fellows all stated, the friendships and bonds formed over the whole of the NCCAT experience is my highlight.

The first connection made was when I tried to call a fellow on my project using the room phones just after arriving at NCCAT. I thought it could be fun to get a call on a landline! I wanted to invite her to explore the grounds before our first gathering with all of the fellows. However, after trying the room extension listed I was unable to reach her as there seemed to have been an error somewhere and I kept reaching the wrong person. Well, I gave up and explored without her, figuring I’d see her in a short while.

After finding the koi and the “secret garden” during the brief exploration period, my project partners and I met at a table for the introductory activities. As we began to settle in I explained my phone story to the table (as I was smelling the nostalgic Mr. Sketch markers) and as it turned out, the person I had contacted twice was at that table! Later she became an “adopted” member of our fellowship.

Throughout the week there were many opportunities to meet so many fabulous teachers from across the state. While we all call different parts of the state home and we all have a variety of teaching passions, we were all there because we want to help other teachers and ourselves to become more informed educators. We are all there to explore different academic topics and we all have different academic and personal interests and that made for great opinions in conversation however, we were all there to help inspire change.

Learning about the different projects at meals and on the patio, getting technical support from ranging technological experts, and moral support from experienced white water rafters were opportune moments to spark fellowships.

The turtle in this picture was spotted while on a brief hike up the mountain path at NCCAT that I was exploring with a friend that I accidentally met while trying to call another friend. I wonder, where is this turtle was headed? Maybe he was on his way to his own fellowship meeting