Something About that White Dress

The second day of our four day weekend consisted of activities that lead to me almost passing out right when I jumped on my bed. Yes, it was tiring indeed... VERY tiring.

First, we visited Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts. The trip to Amherst reminded me a lot of our trip to Dartmouth. Both are roughly a two and a half hour drive from Providence. The scenery that I saw on the way to Amherst was a lot like the one I saw on the way to Dartmouth: trees, trees, and more trees. I suppose we were in the deep rural area of New England.  One difference worth noticing, though, is the snow. It was wonderful to see snow on the ground on the way to Amherst.

Amherst War Memorial

Amherst College is a beautiful place. It is a fairly small school with only about 1800 students. Some facts that stood out to me include its diversity, its five college consortium, its open curriculum, and residence halls. During the information session as well as the campus tour, we were told that Amherst is one of the most diverse colleges on the East Coast. This is a plus, especially for someone like me, who lives in such a diverse state. I also learned about Amherst’s five college consortium. Basically, Amherst students can take classes at any nearby colleges, which include Hampshire, Mount Holyoke, Smith College, and UMass. All of these institutions are within 10 miles of Amherst College. Isn’t that wonderful? In addition, Amherst runs on an open curriculum. Similar to Brown, Amherst students have no core curriculum to fill. This means that there are basically no required classes, such as taking general education classes for the first two years. I am in love with the idea of open curriculum programs, simply because I love the idea of being able to explore my options and expand my horizons. Lastly, during the campus tour, we actually went inside a residence hall for the freshmen. Though we did not get to enter a real dorm, I was impressed with how modern the building was. I really liked it. It was neat, modern, and welcoming.

The only thing that bothers me about Amherst College is the fact that it is in such a rural area. Sure, it is only 2 hours away from Boston and 3 hours away from New York, but I cannot imagine myself living there. I don’t know why I feel that way. I am guessing it is because I am a city girl. I love the business of the city. However, this surely does not outweigh the benefits of being an Amherst student.

Right when the campus tour ended, we were given the greatest opportunity to speak to one of Amherst’s admission officers, Kia. She was able to give us a greater insight in the college admissions process for Amherst. Her down to earth personality really connected with me. We spoke about personal statements mostly. She even gave us a little bit of personal background about her life. I realized the beauty in the fact that everyone’s life is so unique. We are born to unique situations, and they might not always be pleasant situations, but in the end, everyone has a say in how they want their life to be. I could tell that Kia was able to face her adversities and live the way that she wants to. I someday wish to share my stories with other people and hope to inspire them to take control of their own lives (Well, I have to take control of mine, first. But hello… that’s what college is for, right?!).

Emily Dickinson Museum

After our visit at Amherst, we made a quick trip to the nearby Emily Dickinson house. It was literally 10-15 minutes away from the college. I would say that it was an interesting trip. We even saw a replica of Emily Dickinson’s infamous white dress. She definitely intrigues me. Of course, her writings are magnificent, but I think that her personal life is far way interesting. I’m sorry, it’s not that I don’t appreciate her poetry, but it’s just that her life was so controversial! I learned that she began isolating herself from the rest of the world until she died and strictly only wore white. I could never imagine myself doing both, I mean, without logical reasons of course (and plus, white does not complement me at all).  I guess this visit to the museum made me want to do more research on Emily Dickinson just to learn why she did the things that she did….

Mayor Angel Tavares Speaking

Next, we made our way back to Hotel Providence. Upon arrival, we checked in with the Brown people that had a booth set up. We checked into our new rooms and met our new roommates. I am sharing a triple with a girl from Texas and another girl from Pittsburg. They are both very nice. Around 6 PM, my roommates and I went to the ballroom for dinner. It was awesome to reunite with many familiar faces that I met from the summer program. Even my roommate in Perkins Hall was there! After dinner, we had the chance to talk with Angel Tavares, Mayor of Providence. We received a little background on him and he talked a whole lot about his dream. Unlike me, he knew what he wanted to do with his life at a super young age (I’m talking in the 3^rd grade!), which was to be a lawyer. After persevering through school and going to college, he achieved his dream. Later on, he decided to get into politics. He reminded me how powerful laws are. Even more, he made me realize how important it is to have a dream, or a goal. Having something to work towards is a way of keeping yourself focused.  It’s definitely a helpful thing to do.

For the next hour, we watched a presentation from Providence’s Youth In Power organization. This non-profit organization focuses on helping the youth be heard. It was definitely inspiring because the youth does play a huge role in any community. We are the fresh minds that have a lot to offer. We are, as corny as it sounds, the future. I think that having organizations like Youth in Power helps the community shape policies for the youth, with the help of the youth. I mean, that is only logical because it would not make sense to make policies for people without even taking their opinions into consideration. One of the Youth in Power staff members explained how they make their voice heard through organization and persistence. When they need to convince adults or authorities about an issue, they do tremendous amounts of research before even approaching those adults. Then, they show up in large numbers to show how committed and unified they are. This makes so much sense, especially because adults will take teens more seriously if they can see that the teens know exactly what they are talking about. Also, organizing in large numbers show how committed you are to really getting your point across.

After Kisa gave us an overview of our weekend, we went through some community building activities that were similar to those that we did during the summer. For example, we played name games to help each other remember each other’s names. We retired to our assigned rooms around 11 PM.

I am beyond exhausted, and tomorrow is another jam packed day! How exciting it is to get up at 6 AM and sleep at 12 AM and get up again at 7 AM…

I would not have it any other way though. This is way better than doing nothing productive. I cannot wait to revisit Brown University tomorrow.

Day One, Trip Two

I jolted awake at 3:15 AM when my alarm sounded. But when I remembered what it was for I quickly hopped out of bed and pulled on my comfy airplane clothes. My mom and I walked from our house down to El Cerrito High School to catch the shuttle to the airport with the rest of my cohort. When the van arrived, we piled in and drove out to the Oakland Airport. We got to the airport with plenty of time to get through security and have a bit of breakfast. 

Beautiful clouds on the first leg of our trip.

I was seated by the window at the back of plane next to a delightful woman also from the Bay Area.  We had a wonderful conversation about studying abroad and life in high school. She told me of her daughter's experiences and gave me some great advice about traveling and living on my own. It was then that I was reminded how much I love traveling. Meeting new and interesting people is one of the best parts of the trips I've taken with Ivy League Connection. Last summer, I met amazing students and faculty at all the schools I visited and I am bound to meet more this trip, starting with my new airplane friend. 

After a long flight to Chicago, where we stopped shortly to pick up passengers, we finished our journey across the country and were greeted by frigid East Coast air when we went to pick up the rental car. Again, we shoved our luggage in to the van and climbed in. After finding our way to the freeway entrance, everything began to look familiar. I recognized the mall and Federal Hill. I recognized the Mexican restaurant where we ate our first night in Providence this summer and when we stepped in to Hotel Providence, it felt like I had never left. We got our room assignments and went our separate ways to freshen up before dinner. 

Interesting landscaping from above.

Then we walked around the block looking for a place to eat and settled on a little hole-in-the-wall Chinese food restaurant. We sat down and as the tea warmed our bodies, we began to shed our scarves and jackets. We had a filling dinner with conversation of our Action Plans and the progress we had made. Ms. Kronenberg gave great advice on how to run an effective meeting and had great ideas on where to take my plan next now that the election was over. 

Now, I'm sitting in my room blogging and I am so happy to be back on the East Coast. I love the cold weather and I look forward to exploring some more before the Symposium begins tomorrow evening.

A Great Fortune

It’s hard to believe that just a few months ago I was at Brown for the Women and Leadership Summer Program. So much has changed since those three great weeks, but my excitement upon returning to Brown did not change. Today I was just as excited to leave as the first time I left for Providence.

This morning, at exactly 3:11 AM, I woke up to the sound of three different alarms. I set three the night before, just in case two of them somehow failed. I immediately jumped out of bed and got ready to leave. After triple checking that everything I needed was packed away, my dad and I headed down the hill to El Cerrito High.

Unlike our last departure from El Cerrito High, Don did not set up a table in front of the school, weigh our luggage, or take a picture of all of us before we left. In fact, he wasn’t even there. I must admit, we all felt a little lonely without him. Despite not having Don there to guide us, our departure from El Cerrito High went very smoothly. At 4:00 AM the shuttle arrived on time to take us to the Oakland Airport. From there, we headed to terminal 28, and then onto a plane to take us to Providence, Road Island.

Fish eye view of Ynah, Iris and I before departing 

The plane ride was uneventful and, for the most of the time, we were flying through clouds. The plane stopped in Chicago, which was the destination for the majority of those on board. After the plane was reloaded we took off again, and during this leg of the trip, I got a lot of homework done. It seemed like just a few minutes later when the captain told us to fasten our seatbelts for the descent into Providence.

Even though I expected cooler weather, I was still shocked when the cold air greeted us outside of the airport. I had the exact opposite feeling last time we arrived in Providence. Today, the air was cold and dry whereas just a few months ago it was very hot and humid. This change excited me and I could not wait to see what else was different about the area.

Similarly to the summer, we left the airport in a giant white van. By the time the plane landed, it was already getting dark, so it was difficult to see the landscape on our ride to Hotel Providence. Tomorrow, I can’t wait to see how fall has changed the Rhode Island landscape!

My fortune! 

After arriving at the hotel, we quickly settled in our rooms and then went out for a walk around the block to scout out where to eat. After circling around once, we chose to eat at a small Chinese restaurant just a few feet away from the hotel. During dinner, Maddie and I had a wonderful conversation with Mrs. Kronenberg about both politics and our Action Plans. We discussed the importance of decisive decision-making and how to effectively and efficiently achieve a goal. After dinner, the fortune inside my fortune cookie stated: “Your present plans are going to succeed.” I really hope this fortune comes true!

I’m so excited for the next few days. Tomorrow, we will head off bright and early to tour Amherst and then come back to check in for the Leadership Symposium. During just a short dinner conversation today, Mrs. Kronenberg provided me with so many helpful tactics to achieve my action plan. I cannot wait to see what the Symposium has in store for me! 

Hey Brown, I'm Back

I can't believe I'm back in Providence, Rhode Island! It has been a while since I've been here. Coming back brings so many good memories that I had during the summer. Although the weather is the total opposite I could still feel the humid climate that was once welcomed me everyday during the summer. Even though the weather is very it has gotten me so excited. For the first time in my life I saw snow, even if it was a small blob of dirtiness. I can't wait to see what else is in store for me now that I've returned.

I remember receiving a text from my friends, Iris and Ynah, they were telling me to check my e-mail as soon as possible. I wasn't sure why they were telling me to do this until I received another text from my dad congratulating me for being selected to be part of the Leadership Institute Symposium. I was so excited and couldn't believe it. The feeling I had was exactly like the one when I was selected to be part of the Ivy League Connection for the first time.

Being here again makes me feel great happiness. It makes me feel like I accomplished what I wanted to do: make myself noticeable with the people at Brown. I feel way more confident in myself since the first time I came. Even though I will be here only for the weekend, I am positive that I will gain so much knowledge from the Symposium.

Beginning my Action Plan was not very difficult, but trying to keep it going is stressful and a lot of work. Thankfully I have my mom’s full support and many of my friends are helping me out by being part of my Action Plan. At the airport I was having a wonderful conversation with Ms. Kronenberg. She suggested such great ideas that would help me out. It was like I was having my own personal lesson and tips about what to do to help out my action plan. As we kept conversing I couldn't help, but wonder if the Symposium was going to be just as helpful as Ms. Kronenberg was. This made me way more excited than I already was.

It was as if though the Symposium was an Action Plan saver for me. It was offered to me exactly when I needed the most help with my Action Plan. I'm expecting to gain a lot of knowledge in how to fund raise money to keep my Action Plan running, deal with  my stress, and run effective meetings with the teens that are volunteering. I can't wait for tomorrow!

Here We Go Again!

Almost There!

Going to the East Coast this past summer to Providence felt more like a dream than reality. I couldn't believe I was chosen for such a great opportunity. When Brown's leadership course selected me to attend their symposium in the upcoming season, I was ecstatic and once again, thought I was dreaming. 

Today marks the day for Brown II girls to travel back to Rhode Island! Whoo Hoo! Familiar faces were seen today including, Ms. Kronenberg, Aby, Ynah, Emily, and Maddie. Unfortunately, not all of the girls were able to make this trip. The ladies and I soon arrived at the Oakland Airport and we waited patiently, but much more anxiously, for our plane to take us back east! 

Providence welcomed us with a cold gust of wind. We scurried into our new Chevy SUV and drove off to our home: Hotel Providence. We settled into our rooms and prepared for dinner. I was famished! 

I'm hoping for this weekend's leadership symposium to be a blast. Workshops and constructive criticism are awaiting for my soon-to-be-revealed action plan at school. My initial start date for my Action Plan is to take place in December, so this is the perfect time for the symposium to be held! Anything that needs to be tweaked is welcomed and is not too late to be changed. Action Plan perfection 101 begins tomorrow. Here I come!

Welcome Back

I arrived at El Cerrito High School at exactly 3:45 AM. This time, Don was not there to weigh our luggage or remind us to blog; instead, Ms. Kronenberg welcomed us. It was a bittersweet Thursday morning. I was happy to be going back to Brown for the Leadership Symposium, but I was a little sad that only 5 out of 8 of the Brown II cohort are going. It was an awesome reunion though; I missed Emily, Maddie, and Aby (I can't say the same about Iris since we go to the same school and we share one class together, but I am so glad to be spending this trip with her, too!). Our shuttle came two minutes after 4 AM, and before I knew it, we were already on a plane to Rhode Island. We arrived at Providence and quickly made our way to the rental car, just like last summer’s trip. But unlike Jackie’s huge white van, Ms. Kronenberg has to drive a white SUV. On the way to the hotel, all I did was quietly reminisce about my ILC summer trip. I felt so familiar with the area. I was able to remember almost every street name. I was even able to recognize some buildings and shopping places around the area.

It feels almost natural to step into Hotel Providence without hesitation. I felt right at place. One thing that I was not familiar with, though, was the weather. It was freezing! After checking in, we ate dinner at a nearby Chinese restaurant. We did a whole lot of talking during dinner. Our conversations ranged from our life after ILC, to college applications, to our families, and finally, to the symposium. We even talked about our Action Plans.

A couple of months after being unsuccessful with my original Action Plan, I decided to start over. My original project was to contribute to a college going culture in De Anza by bringing alums from colleges as guest speakers. However, the counselors at De Anza were already packed with plans to encourage students to apply to college. I felt that they would not need my help because they already have everything planned out. I did not even have a way of bringing alums to the school either. Also, my personal drive for the project was just fading. I was starting to notice different issues that were affecting me, though. The biggest one, which I choose to act on, is the fact that not enough students, in my opinion, are involved nor exposed to clubs in De Anza. Clubs are extremely important, not only in college applications, but also in developing personality and even forming deep ties between students. They definitely help shape cultural diversities and the student body in any high school. Not to mention that most clubs aim to help the community in some way. In the end, I decided to focus on exposing clubs to students in De Anza by planning to host a “Club Rush” event. However, it has not been going smoothly. It has been hard trying to plan an event that has never happened in De Anza.

I am excited for all that I will be learning from the symposium though. I know that I will be receiving a lot of help from the different workshops that they set up, which includes stress management, running an effective meeting, working with administration and teachers, and others. The support will not only help me in implementing my new Action Plan, but will also lend me even more leadership skills.

Tomorrow, we visit Amherst! I hope that our visit will not only make up for a fun day, but also help me with my college application process. I am currently in the middle of this whole college application whirlwind. I am juggling a bunch of private college apps and UC apps as well. I think that visiting another potential college is a great way to motivate me with the process. It has not been easy focusing, especially with my busy personal life.

All I can say is that the next three days will be packed with memories and lessons that only the Ivy League Connection can provide. I am beyond grateful to be sitting here, across the country, for the second time in my life.

Let's Get Gardening!

My Action Plan:

In America, unhealthy eating habits have lead to an obesity epidemic. More than one third of people in the United States are obese and numbers continue to rise. Many Americans underestimate the significance of obesity and believe that with diet and exercise the problem will be solved. This mentality, however, has lead Americans to put off dealing with their health until it is too late. The initial discomforts of obesity may seem unpleasant, but the long-term health problems can be very serious. People who are obese are at high risk for cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and joint disorders. These conditions are irreversible and plague sufferers for the rest of their lives.

To effectively address the issue of obesity and promote social change, it is essential to focus on the root of the problem. This is the youth of America. Each year, more young people develop health problems directly related to poor nutrition. A federal survey had found that the proportion of young people ages 12 to 19 with diabetes or pre-diabetes increased from 9 percent in 1999 to 23 percent in 2008. Furthermore, studies show that obese adolescents have an 80 percent chance of being obese as an adult.  If young people become more aware of the benefits of healthy eating, they will be able to turn their eating habits around before it is too late. Although Americans are slowly becoming more aware of this massive problem, steps taken to address the issue are negligible compared to the tremendous impact obesity has on American society.

The goal of my Action Plan is to educate students about the importance of healthy eating by starting and maintaining a community garden at my school and donating the harvest to a local homeless shelter. Recently, I have become more aware that students at my school, El Cerrito High, don’t know where their food is coming from, or what it’s made out of. They eat whatever meal is both the biggest and cheapest. This is almost always unhealthy, processed food. Eating processed food not only contributes to obesity, but also to a lack of energy and motivation. If students become more aware of the negative impact of junk food and choose to change their diet, they will not only become physically healthier, but also become more mentally engaged in the classroom.

In order to successfully implement and maintain a community garden at El Cerrito High I will need to start a club. In order to start a club, I will need a teacher sponsor as well as support from the Principal to borrow land. I recently emailed my principal who pledged his support and provided me with the name of a teacher who may be interested in sponsoring me. 

In the middle of November, there is a club fair at my school. This fair is designed to give students the opportunity to learn about and sign up for clubs. At this fair, I will set up a booth and provide students with information relating to the problem of obesity in America and the necessity of a healthy diet. Hopefully students will become more aware of the topic and want to make a difference.  

After the initiation of the club, I will need to fundraise. Due to limited recourses in my school district, it is unrealistic for me to expect any monetary support directly from my school. There is a parent run organization, however, called The Student Activity Fund that provides funding to worthy organizations within my school’s community. Hopefully, this fund will provide me with the money I need to start building the garden. It is often quite hard to get money from The Student Activity Fund, especially if the money does not go directly to academic related areas, so I cannot expect more than basic support. After the initial funding, hopefully I will gain enough momentum to start fundraising in other ways. One strategy is to create a cookbook with healthy recipes and sell them to the outer community. I will also encourage students and members of the community to donate supplies by creating a drop-box. Ideally, this box will be located in the classroom of my teacher sponsor. After building the garden and acquiring necessary supplies, the garden will cost little to maintain and people power will become the main focus.

In order to maintain the garden, I will need a lot of dedicated students. Several of my friends have already pledged their support and I know I can count on them to consistently help out.  In order to graduate from El Cerrito High, students must complete at least 20 hours of community service work.  Students who volunteer in the garden will be able to fulfill their service hours while also gaining an understanding of the importance of healthy eating.

Starting the garden will take a lot of time, so I am also planning to create work days on weekends where students can fulfill several of their community service hours at once. Community members and parents will also be invited to participate. To spread the word of these events, I will create both a Facebook group and contact people through the El Cerrito High News email.

Once the garden is established, members of the club will need to focus on taking care of the plants. In order to do this effectively, students will need to carry out specific tasks such as watering and weeding. I will create a spreadsheet on Google Docs that specifies what needs to be done and for how long. Here, members of the club can sign up for a specific task. This spreadsheet system will also enable me to accurately monitor the community service hours completed by specific students. In order to ensure members of the club actually complete the task they sign up for, each student will need to get a key from the teacher sponsor before entering the garden and return the key after completing their task. With this system in place, I am confident that the garden will thrive.

In order to create a successful garden, it is essential that I create a timeline for planting. I live in a relatively mild climate, so it probably won’t be too hard to find plants to grow year-round, but I still need to make sure that I plant the right plants at the right time. By early December, the club itself will be established. For the next month we will focus on fundraising and setting dates for building the garden. By March the garden will be complete and students can focus on planting. It is unrealistic for me to expect students to come during the summer to maintain the garden, so I am hoping to finish harvesting the majority of plants by the middle of June.

I will consider my Action Plan a success if I am able to gain enough members to successfully maintain a garden before I graduate from high school. This gives me two years to fulfill my goal. During this time, I hope to empress upon members of the club, as well as others in my school, the importance of healthy eating and the significance of the obesity epidemic in America.