February 25, 2016
Read time : 3 min

In our journey through the Up To Us competition we faced many obstacle but have managed to accomplish a lot of goals set for ourselves. One goal was to help educate our peers on an issue such as this because we are the millennial generation that will feel the burden of the national debt in the future. Being that our school, North Carolina Central University, is a Historically Black College (HBCU) we wanted people to know that we are aware of the issues that affect our country. Most HBCUs do not get the recognition like a lot of other universities. Our biggest goal is not only to win the competition but also to make sure students understand the role they can play with the national debt.

Starting with My Two Cents Day last October, we were able to bring most of our school together to talk about the national debt and express how they felt about it. We were able to get 200 students to sign a pledge. At our school, we have what is called 10:40 Break every Tuesday and Thursday where there are no classes held for an hour and students have free time. During our 10:40 break we had tabling events, where we interacted with students discussing and expanding their knowledge on fiscal issues. We had fun games and food for students to enjoy.

It was a wonderful experience meeting with NC Congressman G.K. Butterfield on February 5th, 2016. We discussed the root of debt accumulation in the U.S. today. We also gave him our views about the debt and how we as students want Congress to find ways to reform government spending.

In all, we had our bad days and good days, and as the competition slowly dwindles we know that we are going to finish strong. My team has put their blood, sweat, and tears into this competition. If we were asked to do this all over again, we would with no hesitation. This has been a challenging, yet enriching and exciting experience that we are all proud to say we participated in.