Student Stories
Monika
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
Experiential learning gets you to begin to connect theories of social life with performances and social action, and is rooted in the human-to-human connections you get when you are embedded in a community.
Which community did you volunteer at, and what did you work on while you were there?
I was lucky to have the opportunity to volunteer for two years in Brewster, WA, on literacy and book making. I volunteered with middle school students, which I loved. As a CHID major with training in ethnography as well as a regular contributor to The Daily, it wasn’t hard for me to decide to extend my trip into a six week stay in Brewster, where I led an autobiography and culture writing project with one of the ESL middle school classes in Brewster. We dovetailed learning about the richness of personal memoir writing with reflecting on readings about globalization. Throughout the six weeks, the students then wrote up personal stories that described how, in their own words, their lives have intersected and departed from broader cultural messages about the promise and peril of globalization. This was in 2004, so globalization was still a very hot topic, an in-thing at the time, and we looked at stories of the ways it delivered, and also what was left out. This was, as you can imagine, an ambitious, expansive and interesting six weeks — we opened up many lines of thinking, more than could be contained, I think. I’ve kept in touch with some of the students from that class, a I think it was about a year ago I had one student write to me about our time together. I remember him as this bright, sensitive student who had recently moved to Brewster and was just getting his sea-legs, so to say, with English, but was so curious and intelligent. So, he wrote to me to say he always remembered the ideas we’d discussed, and now he’s pursuing a degree in philosophy in Mexico City. I was so filled with pride and respect for his intellectual journey!
How has being a part of ASB impacted your goals and dreams for the future?
ASB was my first experience with experiential learning in higher education, and it’s never left me. As a CHID major, I had opportunities to study abroad, but I found the questions that visiting my own state through ASB raised in me just as provocative and meaningful as going farther afield. And I have, I think, continued to ask the questions, and have the confidence to try the new things, that ASB spurred in me in much every thing I’ve done since. Experiential learning gets you to begin to connect theories of social life with performances and social action, and is rooted in the human-to-human connections you get when you are embedded in a community. Today I work with a global library cooperative, OCLC, on a project on Wikipedia and public libraries, and I continue to revisit theories of pedagogy as a process and the connections between theory and practice that I first encountered as an ASB volunteer. I was so lucky to find my way to the Pipeline Project, and will continue to be a champion of this incredible form of learning for higher education.
What is a favorite memory you have during your time with ASB?
Learn more about this opportunitySo many great memories! One of the best parts of my extended stay in Brewster, made possible by the connections I developed with Pipeline, was finding the support and funding to have six of the middle school students come to the UW over for a day. We toured the campus and attended a one-day event hosted by CHID, my major, that was taking place with visitors from the CHID program’s connections in South Africa. There was a drum circle, music, rich and beautiful presentations — electricity in the air — the twelve and thirteen-year old students from Brewster stood up and asked good questions. I was so amazed. I love it when worlds come together. The day was this mind blowing meeting — I’ll never forget it. And I think we all fell asleep on the drive back to Brewster.
More Stories
Abigail
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
I think many students come into the university with these grandiose goals to change the world, sometimes forgetting about the small human-to-human relationships that these large changes need to be rooted in.
Alisa Torres
Jumpstart: Early Education
My involvement with the Jumpstart program has truly shown me what it really means to serve others altruistically in our communities.
Ann Margaret
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
The needs of these communities are often neglected in science, so I hope to do something in the future where I can advocate for communities that are close to the land, and be able to bridge the gap between social and environment needs.
Ariana Westbrook
Jumpstart: Early Education
As a result of my service with Jumpstart, I have confidence in the methods I use when I work with children.
Ashley
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
I have made it my personal/professional goal to support others in sharing their stories as a form of personal empowerment.
Chad
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
Particularly, it highlighted the reciprocal nature of learning and growth gained when mixing two very different communities.
Christine Young
Jumpstart: Early Education
I went into UW thinking I had wanted to become a Pharmacist but when I volunteered as a Jumpstart member, I knew teaching was my passion. After I graduated, I was hired as a teacher at the site I had volunteered at.
Dawn
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
ASB allowed children to have a voice, adults to hear those voices and lend resources, and communities to show each other what their homes and journeys were all about.
Feben Gebremichael
Ellis Civic Fellowship
As part of the fellowship, I worked with a number of different organizations. First I explored local food banks, then a brief internship with Ventures, a non-profit that helps equip people with the tools they need to start their own businesses, then with the Dream Project.
Geetika
CELE K-12 Tutor or Mentor
I was initially going back and forth between major and career options, but being a tutor has helped me find a home in the School of Social Work.
Gloria Johnston
Jumpstart: Early Education
Eight years later, I am still close friends with my fellow teammates.
Heaven Tesfamariam
Ellis Civic Fellowship
The Ellis Fellowship had an impact on my post-graduation plans because of the service component, which made me more involved in my community–especially the Eritrean Community Center. One of my biggest commitments with them has been mentoring YPFDJ (Young People Stand for Democracy and Justice).
Jillian
CELE K-12 Tutor or Mentor
I love the one-on-one work with students, and strongly believe in the value of mentoring young children.
Joy Levine
Ellis Civic Fellowship
Twelve thousand of our neighbors are currently experiencing homelessness and countless more live with unstable housing due to high rents. My Ellis Fellowship service commitments with Mary’s Place, Pike Market Senior Center, and ROOTS Young Adult Shelter gave me a passion for affordable housing policy and bringing down barriers to housing for our at-risk neighbors.
Kaylen
CELE K-12 Tutor or Mentor
Being a tutor has definitely opened my eyes to see how important it is to be a consistent person in these kids’ lives.
Kiss’Shonna Curtis
Ellis Civic Fellowship
I’d like to be active in being a part of the change for Seattle’s homeless population and advocating for more mental health resources.
Nancy Huizar
Ellis Civic Fellowship
As a young woman of color, I researched and have experienced how historically and in present-day communities, People of Color have been intentionally kept out of decision-making on important environmental issues.
Shruti
Riverways Rural & Tribal Programs
My experience gives me hope for the future, because I know that there are people out there, such as the ones at CELE who are trying to elevate under-privileged communities and their youth and bringing us closer to equity in not just education but all aspects of society.
Steven Rowe
Ellis Civic Fellowship
As a fellow, I participated as a Union Gospel Mission front desk assistant, a youth tutor for the Seattle public library (Delridge branch), a Somali Community Services tutor, and a Juvenile Detention Center activity facilitator.
Tehya Widmann
Jumpstart: Early Education
I joined Jumpstart because I wanted to keep working with children even though I was pursuing a non-education major.
Vy Tran
Ellis Civic Fellowship
The majority of my time was spent organizing events, working on the curriculum, and getting more mentors onboard. We were also placed in special storytelling and community classes together, which were pretty amazing…some of the most interesting topics I’ve ever been presented with in college.
