Second Year reflection on GOALS

This past summer I had the chance to study abroad in Poland with the Sociology Department’s Summer School in the Social Sciences in Warsaw, and for five weeks I got to experience a culture completely different from my own. This experience was invaluable and I not only got to learn about the troubled history of the country and central Europe in general, but I had the opportunity to see the effects firsthand. I also traveled with the London Honors Program my first year and was able to see the rich culture of England as well. I am fascinated by the differences in culture across the world and love to interact with people there and be immersed in the history. There are so many things that our young country hasn’t experienced and there is such a deep history worth exploring across the world.

While in Poland this summer, I worked with researchers that direct the largest and longest running panel study in central Europe. I had the opportunity to choose my own project and subject to research and during my time there I learned the appropriate statistical procedures and techniques for writing a paper on perceived sources of success in life for Poles based on age and place of residence. Not only was this topic interesting and new but the process of research was as well. I had to engage in problem solving and finding creative ways to use statistics, learn how to compose the sections of a research paper, find the best ways to create tables and more. My involvement in research isn’t over however, since coming back to Ohio State I have presented at a research forum, plan to present at the Denman, and submit my article to JUROS. My research may be finished, but presenting it is a whole new challenge as well. I also will be taking an advanced research course in social psychology in which I hope to use the skills I have gained and hone them even more so.

The combination of psychology and criminology is a unique mix that makes for a curriculum that is extremely interesting to me and applicable for future careers. I am very excited to be involved in the reentry movement for ex-offenders and think the classes I get to take in these majors will be very useful. I really genuinely enjoy learning and this makes it easy to be involved in my classes and look for ways I can apply what I’m learning to the world. I enjoy challenging myself with classes that expand my knowledge. It is also so fascinating to see the overlap in these two social sciences and how I can apply information from each class to another and see how it can apply to a new context.

I am involved in a campus church, H2O, in which I am a leader of a small group of women. We meet weekly to explore the Bible and share encouragement and challenges. I have the opportunity to prepare our time every week and lead our discussion with questions, and get to intentionally meet up with these women and do life with them. I also have a team leader I who coaches me  and helps me develop in leadership. This summer I will be going to Colorado as a part of H2O’s Leadership Training program as well, where I will be learning even more how to be a leader especially in the church. A large part of leading is coming alongside people and I think this is comes up in many parts of life, but especially for my future career, it is so important that I am getting experience leading while at OSU so in the future I can know how to lead people in reintegrating to society after prison and come alongside them in their struggles.

Once a month I serve at the Bridge Community center with H2O. We help clean and organize the building and do repairs to allow them to focus on the refugees they engage with in Columbus. I believe it is so important that they see the unseen in the city and find ways to show them that someone cares that they are here. I want to be able to do the same throughout life and in my career, that I would not be volunteering or working for my own sake, but as a servant to the people I engage with. In the fall I would like to get involved in an organization that serves those who have been in contact with the justice system and that I could regularly care for these people I have such a heart for helping. Especially in a large city, I think so many people go unnoticed, but I want to be someone who not only sees them but serves them.