On adjustment to University life...

• “I plan on taking all these lessons with me and refining them, even adding to them with my college experience. I hope that when I graduate I will be the woman I want to be. The Eagle Adventure has greatly improved my changes of achieving this goal.” Female Participant Day 5
• “The girls and the group in general have been talking a lot about school/campus life and it’s helping to settle my nerves.” Female Participant Day 5
• “Being able to work well with people you just recently met can be a very big help during the college experience.” Female Participant Day 5
• “I am anxious for the semester to start. I can’t wait to finally be a college student, and get my life underway. I’m not sure what to expect over the course of the next year, but I am ready with an open mind and a willing heart.” Male Participant Day 6
• “I’m excited about heading back to school today with my new family but I wish it was a little more exciting and longer.” Male Participant Day 6
• “It [trusting others] will help us as freshmen in our coming years at USM by letting us practice reaching out to others, admitting that we need help at times, and forming bonds with those around us that will eventually grow into lasting friendships.” Female Participant Day 1
• The stuff we’ve been doing has helped us in other ways that we can apply to college: for one thing we’re very independent while we’re out here. Very similarly to life away from home. We’re free to choose to do the right thing and are faced with natural consequences rather than lectures for bad judgment calls. For instance, lagging behind in the group to take a swim may seem like a great idea and no one is going to tell you not to do it. On the same, doing so will mean you’ll have to paddle extra hard to catch up. Your team has to wait on you and may even be pissed at you. Just like at school, partying on Sunday night is fine and dandy. Do what you want! Just know you’re gonna be tired, unprepared, and run the risk of oversleeping your Monday morning class. Another thing we’ve learned is that preparation depends on you. You decide what to pack, how to pack it, and how to stay dry and safe. Similar to a school, no one reminds you to do your homework or tells you to study for a test. The preparation for those things rests in our hands alone.” Female Participant Day 4
• “Last night I learned the significance of the Velveteen Rabbit. We are all real to our parents because they love us. Everything that makes us, us, comes from them. Going to college is like becoming real because we get to become individuals. We won’t be molds of our parents any more. We get to develop new traits that will form us into adults. Our true friends will love us for who we are no matter what, and only people who don’t understand us will think we are strange. I’m excited about going through the REAL process. It takes your whole life and it isn’t always fun. It’s difficult because of the things we all have to learn and endure before we can be considered our own people—real people. The process involves deciding about your morals and ethics, what religion you want to be, what you want out of life and from your life partner. The road to becoming real is bumpy but it is also the ride of your life. It’s also too short to not stop and admire the sights every once in awhile. So live every minute like it’s your last. Make choices and learn from their consequences. Don’t judge others simply because they are different from you. Remembering that the only reason they seem odd is because you are too blind to understand their “realness.” Have an open mind but also concrete ethics. Know thyself. Don’t let anyone change that or lure you into a life that contradicts your morals or who you are. Only by being true to yourself and discovering who you are can you ever become truly REAL. Female Participant Day 6
• “I really think that by not giving up on these tasks has helped me build up determination for not giving up in school. These are some of the hardest days I have had so if I can accomplish this, I can do anything. The books also helped me realize that hard work doesn’t always pay the bills, which makes me want to stay in school and get a good degree. I know I will succeed in college even if it takes me forever. I am committed and I have the heart to do the job.” Female Participant Day 4
• “I am quite surprised at how educational this trip was. I have learned so much that even words can’t describe. Living with all these people has definitely prepared me for the dorms.” Female Participant Day 6
• “I really think I am prepared now for my first semester.” Male Participant Day 5

On emotional, social, and personal development...

• “This whole experience is outside of my comfort zone, but I really want to expand my boundaries and grow as a person.” Female participant Day 1
• “By now everyone knows each other and we are a lot like a family. We are responsible for one another and enjoy each other’s company. We have to use our individual strengths for the good of all. We are also learning to see thing from different perspectives. We have to depend and trust on the team, but the team has to be able to depend and trust us. Just because there is a group working on a task does not mean we can slack off. Each person has to carry his fair share. Also we learned to be considerate of individuals as a team but also individuals need to be considerate of the team. I am learning so much about people that cannot be taught in a classroom.” Female participant Day 3
• “I had a stupid selfish fit at first because of one of the people I now had to sleep with. But I realized that if I wanted to grow and be a better person, then I needed aggrevating things are people. Without adversity there is no growth. Big deal if I can be happy with people I like, anyone can do that. It takes strength to still be happy around mean people and through rough times.” Female participant Day 4
• “Some of the girls, actually just one, is not doing as well. She is impossible to please and nothing is good enough for her. This really got under my skin and I said some things making fun of her. Bit as I thought about it, the picture became clear that complaining about someone complaining is still complaining. I need to be more tolerant of others even when they are not being tolerant…From now on I am going to try very hard to respect other people even if I find their behavior unrespectable.” Female Participant Day 5
• “In addition to overcoming my physical fears, I had to overcome social ones. I am usually so worried about everyone liking me that I forget to just be myself and “become real” like the Velveteen Rabbit. This trip has taught me that it is more important to have a few people love the real me than to have everyone love the “stuffed” me.” Female Participant Day 6.
• “That is one thing I have learned. No matter how bad the trees, logs, sticks, and spiders are there is always a blue sky, a good joke, or a lively song to sing in order to break up something that looks murky. There are people here that care. As little as we know about each other, we care about one another…We have managed to bring a group of individuals and transform them into a well-oiled machine that could conquer the world if they had to.” Female Participant Day 4
• “Sure the pole was a little unstable, but so is life at times. Sometimes we just have to look back and see what we put into something in order to make that final leap toward our goals.” Female Participant Day 4
• “We humans tend to let things like opinion and ridicule rule what we do. If I have any wish for the friends I have made here, it is for them to find who and what they are and not let matters of opinion and ridicule steer them into something they have not chosen for themselves.” Female Participant Day 5
• “Today I discovered that the river can represent your life. In places it was easy to paddle and move downstream equaling the easy parts in your life. But there are also calm spots or even back currents where it seems almost impossible to move forward—sometimes even getting turned around and doing circles. These moments represent the struggle in your life. You have to remember that by pushing on you prepare yourself to enjoy the other parts of your life.” Female Participant Day 4
• “At first I was very skeptical about lack of make-up, dirty hair, hairy legs—but it brought out the “real” me—no superficial products to help you be “better.” Female Participant Day 6
• “I want to make my parents proud of me. I want to show them that I can be a self-sufficient young man, but I don’t think I ever will be in their eyes. I have to try as hard as I can. No more video games!!” Male Participant Day 4
• “I have learned that risk does equal reward, but the bigger the risk, the more change you are gonna fall. This is pushing myself to the limit and keeps going. I will keep my promise to myself to always try something once but I will finish. ALWAYS.” Male Participant Day 2
• “I was apprehensive, but I realized that letting go of my nerves and allowing others to help me made it a lot easier. Hopefully over the course of this adventure we are all going to become very trusting and reliant on each other. I think that’s one of the main goals of this trip.” Female Participant Day 1
• “We didn’t finish it [dangle duo], but I’m glad we tried. I don’t feel like we failed, only that we set a goal and accomplished it, even if that goal was different from the rest of the groups.” Female Participant Day 2
• “The storm last night taught us a few things too. Even when stuff goes wrong and you know it will, the storms will pass and you can overcome them. Just like life away from home. Sometimes we’ll be scared, homesick and feel like just giving up and moving back in with mom and dad. What we have to realize is that bad things, even unexpected things, happen for a reason. It’s part of becoming an adult to be able to learn to cope with difficult situations and not give up. Even when our parents and close friends may not be there to offer solace or advice. Managing through that storm can be related to college in this way: just like difficulties, the storm came to pass. And it shows by our continuance on this adventure that it takes more than an obstacle to keep strong-willed, independent, young adults from finishing what they start and working til the end to achieve their goal of success.” Female Participant Day 4
• “Word of the day eclectic—from many backgrounds coming together. Which is what all of us did over the course of this trip.” Male Participant Day 5
• “I hope that we can listen better and not speak of giving up. Life is difficult—you can’t just walk away and quit.” Female Participant Day 1
• “I am proud of myself for completing these courses. I feel that I can do anything now. It is kind of like Nickel and Dimed. Sometimes in life you fall down, but you have to get up and try again. I also feel like the rabbit—all worn out and dirty.” Female Participant Day 2
• “I am standing up for myself better since TEA.” Female Participant Day 4
• “During TEA I feel that my confidence has improved. Confidence is one thing that I am having problems with and I seem to be balancing it.” Female Participant Day 4
• “I am still ready to go home, but I am a better person because of this experience. I can teach myself how to conquer my own fears now. I won’t give up.” Female Participant Day 4
• “I think that by being with people I don’t like helps me because in real life you don’t always get to pick your team. I have seen some improvement in group work though…If it is one thing I have developed while on this trip it is tolerance. We have learned to tolerate each other and our habits.” Female Participant Day 5
• “I am stronger now than I was before. More seasoned and experienced. I can take on the world. I feel wonderful knowing that I have conquered The Eagle Adventure, and I welcome any new task that is set before me. I am strong enough.” Female Participant Day 6
• “I felt great knowing that I didn’t give up. This is the sweet taste of victory. Coming in 4 th place was a very nice confidence boost because I am usually close to last. I feel great about myself and I hope this feeling lasts.” Female Participant Day 6
• “I have learned that to get through obstacles you have to work as a team and not try to show off and try to do it yourself. I feel that the obstacles are supposed to represent things we go through in our everyday life. Before I cam to The Eagle Adventure I like to do things by myself and not work in groups for example at school. And after this first day I feel I have already changed because I learned it is so much easier to work together and when you work together you make friends which makes life something to live for.” Male Participant Day 1
• “It just felt so good to work together as a team and conquer the impossible.” Male Participant Day 2
• “This is where the rapids in the river represent the fun times in our life which are fast and fun, and the slow parts of the river represent the hard and difficult times in our life which are long and seem to be never ending.” Male Participant Day 4
• “I accomplished my most desired goal today—my self-confidence problem. We had to do a number of activities today (all having to do with weight) and at first I was very nervous but by the end of the activities I feel totally comfortable with myself. I think this is the best I’ve ever felt. I don’t feel like an outcast at all and that’s really cool too. I am very happy here and I can’t wait til tomorrow.” Female Participant Day 1
• “So far from this trip I have learned that I am scared to death of not knowing what is ahead. I never knew it bothered me that much. I have learned when you want to just give up and go home (like I did last night) you can’t; you just have to keep on going. I have learned that even if you work really hard to do something (the tarp) you could still fail. You need to work hard as a team and be considerate of other people’s feelings.” Female Participant Day 5
• “I think we will all come out to be better people because of these character traits that are being taught and learned every day…” Male Participant Day 2
• “Today’s word of the day is tolerance, and although it has nothing to do with physical activities, it can make or break a team.” Male Participant Day 5
• “By now we have all bonded really well, you would think we had been friends for years. I really think all or most of us will stay friends for years to come. We are really working well as a team. By the end of the week we will all be family. Male Participant Day 2
• “I think I will be able to take a lot away from this trip and be able to apply it to school next year. I think one of the biggest things this trip has taught me is to live in the now, not in the past and not in the future. That is something I have heard my whole life but I’ve never been able to really do it. But this week I have not had one thought about what I should have done different last week or what I need to do next week when I get home. And that’s great because I can be a bit of a worrier. So I am happy to spend this week living in the now and not worry about planning out the rest of my life. I hope I can continue that next week and throughout my life.” Male Participant Day 4
• “I feel like I am going to be a different person after this week, a better person. I really feel some changes taking place. I do feel like a stronger person already. I have been stretched a lot this week in many, many ways. I’ve been tested relying on myself and being completely responsible for my decisions and actions and have seen immediate consequences. I have also learned to really count on others as well. If I can’t count on the people around me to help me out, who can I trust. If my teammates can’t count on me then they are in a world of shit. I think I have learned a lot about working with others. I have learned to be more sensitive towards others needs, to put my peers before myself and not be selfish. It has taught me to listen to the advice of others. Especially to my elders who are more experienced and to people like my instructors who have my best interest in mind. This week has taught me about partnerships but leadership as well. Because as team members we each have our own skills to contribute although we are not all the best at one thing.” Male Participant Day 5
• “I have really learned so much on this trip, I really feel like a different person, a better person. I have learned a lot about myself and about others…Today’s word is eclectic which fits perfectly because we are such an eclectic group of people. We all come from such different backgrounds and we all have such different backgrounds. But we have melded together just lovely. We have really worked together great.” Male Participant Day 6

On positive attitudes towards Southern Miss...

• “Today has been awesome!! Canoeing was 110% better. Having fun with my future classmates really inspires school spirit. Derek and I did Southern Miss cheers while floating down stream today and everyone joined in. It was great! We also now have plans to attend the 1 st football game together.” Female Participant Day 4

• “We had fun on the river singing, joking, and practicing our USM cheers.” Female participant Day 4
• “I cannot possibly thank Dr. Kay and Dr. Wolfe and Stephanie, Courtney, and Danica and the University of Southern Mississippi enough for putting this on. They were amazing. I love you all. Southern Miss to the top.

On the student leaders...

• “The leaders are so inspiring and they make us believe that we can do anything.” Female Participant Day 6