Spring Break 2020 – Atlanta, GA

This is a continuation from my “Spring Break 2020 – Savannah, GA” post.

Wednesday, March 11th – Advancing to Atlanta

Our lovely MUNDO advisors waited in line an hour before Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room opened for the day. There is always a line. Meanwhile, students explored the area. My small group of friends looked in shops and actually came across SCAD, Savannah College of Art & Design. We went in to see what was accessible to the public, and found out that they had an experience for visitors! It felt like a Disney attraction as we were led through rooms and watched the story of SCAD’s beginnings in animation all over the walls and decorations.

When the entire group was sat down for lunch, we soon discovered why it was so highly reviewed and hailed as one of the best comfort food establishments in Savannah. The meal was phenomenal and filling.

This was the spread for lunch! Refills were available. Dessert came out later: a small dish of peach or apple cobbler with ice cream.

MUNDO departed for Atlanta shortly after lunch and we arrived at our hotel just before 5 PM. That evening, two friends and I ate dinner at Baja Fresh before exploring Georgia Aquarium. This aquarium was worth the price, and I was able to acquire the cheapest possible tickets by purchasing online for the “after 4 PM time slot.” Sometimes, attraction prices change based on the time of attendance! Having spent nearly three hours there and admiring the wonderful aquatic life, my friends and I walked around the Olympic Park nearby. The last activity of the night was a ride on the Skyview Atlanta ferris wheel.

Thursday, March 12th – The Ongoing Fight for Civil & Human Rights

This full day consisted of little free time but involved immense information to be retained and discussed with the rest of the group, as well as beyond. It turns out that Atlanta is the First City of the Civil Rights Movement. Well-known leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Lonnie King Jr., grew up in Atlanta. Activists from all over moved to the area as well, and Sweet Auburn was one of the most prosperous black business districts in the U.S.

In the morning, MUNDO explored a little of the Atlanta History Center. This large institution itself, however, could take an entire day or more to go through and digest, since it is 33 acres. Not only is it a history museum but a research center. Most of us were able to go into a few rooms in the main building.

I first went to “Gatheround: Stories of Atlanta,” to learn more about Atlanta’s past, present, and future. There were stories from individuals hailing from different communities and walks of life. There were sections on immigration (15% of metro Atlanta residents are foreign-born), politics, Southern foodways, transportation, religion, and more. This space acknowledged that humans have been on the land for thousands of years; the Muscogee Creek village of Standing Peachtree called the land home by the mid-1700s. European American settlers forced the indigenous peoples’ removal.

It was interesting to learn that Atlanta has tried to present itself as a city “too busy to hate.”

I learned about fires that destroyed parts of Atlanta neighborhoods. I learned about washerwomen strikes in the 1940s that won the women higher pay and more bargaining power. The strikes marked the first American labor movement for service workers. I saw an interactive screen showing the Atlanta metro area’s growth and various statistics. One of the students was looking at income in the area and comparisons demonstrated by the size of bubbles/circles. I did interact with a voting machine that asked “Does your vote matter?” I pressed the button for “Yes” and lifted the flap to see the scores. At that time, 49 people had voted “Yes” while 40 chose “No.” This was a little surprising to me but I can understand because despite people voting and voicing concerns, structural and systemic change is very difficult to achieve. It is incremental and painstaking at that.

The next exhibit I went to was “Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow.” The exhibit chronicled Black efforts for full inclusion into society from 1865 through World War I. I took on a more somber mood as I read about race riots, lynchings, and countless struggles. I did feel uplifted reading activists’ quotes, such as “Up, up, you mighty race! You can accomplish what you will,” by Marcus Garvey in 1920. This exhibit had information about W.E.B. DuBois, the Great Migration, interracial cooperation, and the contrasts between segregation and Jim Crow in the North and South. It also included artifacts (sheet music, cartoons, post cards) that reinforced stereotypes about Blacks/African Americans. Even to this day, stereotypes are present in different forms. Furthermore, even though Black people won the right to vote, struggles to make it to the ballots exist. In recent news, a Black man had to wait for about seven hours to vote. This is unacceptable.

The states in blue were part of the Union while the red states were part of the Confederacy. Border states is a new term to me, actually. These states did not join the Confederacy and did not declare secession from the Union. For more information on the border states, here is a handy resource:
https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-border-states.htm

The whole group went outside to the Tullie Smith Farm grounds and into the farm house to view the rooms. We saw a magnificent and massive loom. Elsewhere on the grounds were a smoke house, a detached kitchen, blacksmith quarters, and a garden. A shelter for sheep and goats were also nearby. We heard about the difference between a farm and a plantation; farms have less than 19 enslaved people, but in reality, actual numbers can be far greater than the ones reported.

We all walked over to the Swan House, a mansion built for entertaining guests. Affluence was apparent by the building design and furnishings.

After lunch, MUNDO wandered through the World of Coca Cola, which was incredibly fun. Upon entrance, each visitor received a small Coca Cola can. We learned about the history of this iconic brand and how the secret formula is safely guarded. We saw different bottle shapes and the different brands that encompass Coca Cola Co. We even saw the process of bottling the beverage. The best part was getting the chance to taste 100 flavors of Coca Cola beverages from around the world! I could not get to every continent and sample every one of their drink choices. I did try all of the ones from Asia, Latin America, and Europe and left with a few favorites in mind. Some drinks were very carbonated. I liked the fruity ones the best. This experience was fun but hectic because people darted around to get drinks into their cups. The group exited by entering the gift shop, where I picked up a few souvenirs.

This mural faces the entrance of the museum.

Following that experience was a self-guided tour of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. Some people in the group engaged with the lunch counter activity. I sat on a stool and slipped on headphones. According to the counter instructions, I placed my hands on the counter and closed my eyes. I could not finish hearing the full audio clip, because the voices coming from the headphones felt like the people were right by me in real life. My hands moved away from the counter and the sounds disappeared. It was very distressing to me. Others in the group did complete it and reported that the chairs shook and that they heard glass breaking. When sit-ins happened, mean onlookers would actually physically touch and verbally harass the peaceful protestors. Opponents of equality would shake the chairs and intimidate the protestors, many of whom were students. As I went through the museum, I learned of new people involved in the Movement.

 

This installation allows visitors to turn the blocks and view the story of the individual pictured. These are some of the people who died (were killed) in their work towards equality. Many of the perpetrators did not face consequences, or if they did, it was lenient. Law enforcement also could not be counted on to uphold justice.

 

This wall displayed different features of civil and human rights: security, democracy, justice, education, fairness.

This is a map of political freedom. At a glance, the yellow means free, orange means partly free, and red means not free. The content is from Freedom House, from its annual report on “Freedom in the World.”

I liked the section about human rights and how information was displayed. I watched short videos of people talking about their experiences with human rights violations and oppression. I glanced at the current dictators in the world. I read stories of activists. I learned about ethical footprints – where do the items and foods I use come from? I want to use more fair-trade and ethically sourced products, even if that means paying more for them. An idea I had from this section was that MUNDO could have a meeting/workshop on the digital world and what freedom looks like, such as censorship, dissent, misinformation, and disinformation.

My friend and I were the last ones to leave the museum since we took time in the gift shop. We returned to the hotel to change our attire for the alumni dinner. We bussed to Mary Mac’s Tea Room. MUNDO happily hosted two Ohio State alumni. The alumna had graduated in 2015 with a Public Health degree and currently works for the Center for Disease Control & Prevention. She had earned her Master of Public Health at Emory. The alumnus had graduated in 2004 from Fisher College and has been in Atlanta for over a decade now.

 

We had a lovely time talking with the two alumni over a meal.

Friday, March 13th – Serve, Learn, Lead

Our morning was spent at The King Center, a resource center and community institution established by Mrs. Coretta Scott King. This National Historic Site offers history and contemporary information and activities to challenge people to think and reflect. It is not just one building but multiple, so this center can also take days to absorb.

Several people, myself included, toured MLK Jr’s childhood home for about 30-40 minutes. I learned that for his upbringing, his parents encouraged him to talk about matters such as race at the dinner table. The park ranger who was our guide informed us that young Martin did not like doing the dishes, but enjoyed scooping coal in the cellar.

Six of us had the wonderful opportunity to tour the home of MLK Jr. Sadly, tours are first come first serve the day of and tickets are not reservable.

The group had to grab lunch in a hurry because we followed with volunteering after the King Center. We participated in community service at Open Hand Atlanta for three hours. The organization’s meal programs serve vulnerable low-income clients and deliver fresh, medically/nutritionally-tailored meals to homes.

To prepare for this volunteer experience, we discussed Open Hand Atlanta and food access in the group Pre-Travel Meeting. We all adhered to the requirements of wearing closed-toe shoes, long pants, and long sleeves, and no jewelry or piercings. We also put on hair nets and those of us in the group who scooped food also had face nets and sleeve protectors. Others helped gather meals for individuals. I also placed the appropriate number of requested beverages (milk and juice cartons) by each meal pile. A few individuals were tasked with working in a cooler. Near the end of the shift, we boxed the meals and taped them off; they were then ready to be sent to people! While I do not know how many people we helped, I am sure that it makes a difference. Open Hand staff stated that many volunteer groups had canceled with them, so they were appreciative that we could help out. Likewise, we were thankful to learn about this organization and aid their efforts.

 

MUNDO was thankful to serve the Atlanta community and help provide meals to seniors.

We discussed these reflection questions on the bus ride back to the hotel:

-MLK is a prominent figure in American history. Did you learn something new about him? If you did, do you feel like that should have been taught to you in school? Why or why not?
-MLK was criminalized and not as revered as he is now during the time that he was alive. Did you learn anything about that today? Why do you think that changed? What does this change mean for accountability of our past as Americans?
-What is the difference between voluntourism and actual service? Do you think that this service actually benefits the community of Atlanta?
-Why is this community service necessary in addressing economic disparities in Atlanta? What did you observe at this site, in terms of visible race/ethnicity or socioeconomic status? Does this reflect the general population of Atlanta?
-Pair & share: Research or recall a person who played a role in the Civil Rights Movement who has not been widely recognized.

Saturday, March 14th – This is Just the Beginning

Our group checked out by 11 AM and we stored our luggage and bags on the bus. We had the morning to explore Atlanta for the final time before we left for Columbus at 2:30 PM. A majority of the group traveled via ride-share to Ponce City Market, with plenty of shops and food stalls to satisfy us. I purchased from a sustainable home goods store that supports fair-trade and hand-made items. I also supported another local, small business by buying candles. After buying some pork dumplings at the market, I went with friends to The Varsity for lunch. The Varsity was recommended to us by the MUNDO coordinator, and it was a great last meal in the city. The food is very affordable and I got my food within a minute of ordering; that is how fast it is!

https://thevarsity.com/

After lunch, my friends and I joined the rest of the group on the bus, and we made our return to Columbus, Ohio. We made a stop for dinner, and then one more stop to use a public restroom.

Reflection questions:
-How will you use what you learned in the future? What can you take back to Ohio State?
-Do you feel as though your schooling has taught you enough or prepared you enough to have these conversations? Why do you think that you haven’t had these conversations?
-How has this experience changed you?

Sunday, March 15th
We dropped participants off at Ohio Union and Archer House. I asked in the group chat for people to ‘like’ my message if they made it to their homes/residences safely. I wanted to make sure that they all were safe.

Overall, I appreciated my experience planning and participating in this spring break trip! I continue to add to my knowledge, which I will use to be a better advocate and ally. I learned firsthand the additional duties of an Action Team Leader and enjoyed it all. In fact, I will continue as an Action Team Leader for MUNDO for the 2020-2021 school year. Soon, a feedback form will be sent to the spring break experience participants to get their insights on the trip. I can already think of changes and considerations for future trips: making sure that we email students with their @buckeyemail.osu.edu (just using @osu.edu might not get through to them), supporting the action team members more, and starting and/or ending on campus at times that will make everyone feel safer (arriving back at midnight can lead to anxiety and uneasiness regarding how to get home, because buses may not run at that time, and some students may not want to use ride-share services). This was a great spring break experience, and we were fortunate enough to get to see attractions right before they closed down to keep people safe and healthy during this public health pandemic.

Spring Break 2020 – Savannah, Georgia

I went on my last undergraduate trip with the amazing student organization MUNDO. We took a road trip down to the South for spring break 2020. Our group of 15 people (12 students and three staff mentors) went to Savannah, Georgia for a few days. For the second half of the week, we explored Atlanta. The purpose of this entire experience was to expand our awareness about the history of colonial cities and their role in the Civil Rights Movement, as well as the continuous struggles for equity in the United States. We became armed with greater knowledge and greater confidence in ourselves to create social change, which can start by holding space and conversations. Our group examined social justice issues and engaged in critical thought and discussions throughout the week. It was truly fascinating and as some of us say in colloquial terms, “mind-blowing.”

Saturday, March 7th – The Road Trip


Everyone arrived at the three campus pick-up locations on time. The group was able to depart for Georgia before 8:00 AM. The drive down South was peaceful. I worked on an assignment the whole time and was pleasantly surprised and thankful that the bus WiFi was very cooperative. It allowed me to listen to music too! We made a stop for lunch in Virginia and I tried Bojangles for the first time. I did not try their famous chicken and biscuits, but I ate a grilled chicken sandwich with deliciously seasoned fries. We continued and arrived in Savannah, Georgia around dinner-time. Several of us got food at an Asian take-out restaurant called Tokyo Café. I was excited to support a small business that is not only locally-owned, but also run by people of color. The area we were in had a plethora of hotels and restaurants, both chain and local. It was interesting to see Spanish moss trees everywhere. That night, I flipped through several brochures in the hotel to help me determine what I wanted to do in my free time.

Sunday, March 8th – Settling into Savannah

People ate breakfast in the hotel before we met up outside in the hotel parking lot around 9:35 AM. Breakfast options included make-your-own waffles, sausage patties, fried eggs, sliced cheese, and boiled eggs. Fresh fruits (apples, oranges, bananas) along with a few cereal options and oatmeal were also available. We addressed the indigenous peoples of the land we were currently visiting: the Muskogee (Creek), Guale, and Yamasee tribes. One of the staff mentors said to the group, “These tribes continue to thrive on this land today, but we acknowledge the genocide experienced by their ancestors in the past and the emotional labor necessary to continue the legacy.”

We boarded the bus and made our way towards the Historic District of Savannah. Lining the sidewalks on each side were trees of Spanish moss that draped down towards us. The air felt fresh and less polluted while the atmosphere felt more relaxed and carefree. When we reached Chippewa Square, we were given about 20 minutes to roam the streets before our Savannah Walking Tour would begin to give us an orientation to the area. Some of us stopped into a bookstore to peruse the books. Not many shops were open at 10 AM. Our tour guide was an older man with a well-rehearsed script and the willingness to answer any questions. We learned about how Savannah was founded and other neat facts. This laid down a foundation for us about how Savannah came to be about and events that took place there that shape life today. I learned that Georgia was named after King George. I also learned that churches and bars are usually in close proximity to each other. This tour was about two hours long and we went through a handful of the 22 squares in Savannah.

A peer shared her thought out loud about how these stories of the individuals (often military-involved men) who get honored by monuments can be glorified, and a staff mentor felt so proud from hearing this analysis. Why are certain individuals displayed and remembered in a city’s history? What traits do they have in common? I appreciated hearing my peers think about anything and everything.

We did not really have time for a sit-down lunch. Some people brought snacks with them. This is an important tip for MUNDO experiences: pack a snack. The guided tour of the First African Baptist Church was incredibly impactful. It was constituted in December 1777 and is the oldest continuous Black church in North America. As visitors sat in the pews, a young man in his 20s was our guide and he did not explain everything explicitly to us but allowed us to make the connections for ourselves.

Students and two staff mentors (far right) proudly pose in front of the church. Our hour-long tour transported to us through history and transformed our thinking.

Our guide told us the story of George Leile, an African American man who was enslaved and later freed, and who baptized fellow enslaved individuals. Reverend Leile established Baptist churches in Jamaica and people in his Congregation established FABC in Savannah. Words that came to my mind from the tour information: intentionality, purpose, foresight, and vision. It dawned on me how resilient and resourceful enslaved and free African Americans were and their intentionality behind the church design and objects: stained-glass windows, pews, floor, etc. They were more intelligent than they were made out to be by their slave-holders and the public. 

For more of the history, please see this site: https://firstafricanbc.com/history.php

Additional information that made an impression on me was that the church had a barrel roof; the walls and ceiling met in rounded corners to allow sound to travel so that someone’s voice can be heard anywhere in the room without a microphone. In the basement, a small part of the floor had holes, to let the Georgia pine wood breathe due to moisture, and to allow people resting underneath breathe as well. The FABC housed people fleeing to freedom as part of the Underground Railroad. The people associated with this church also resisted white supremacy and colonist forces in that the cross symbol used was an Ethiopian cross, not European. Subtle, but significant.

It was also interesting that the church’s 17 pastors have all been black men, and a number of them were mixed race and light-skinned. An important conversation matter is how lighter skin complexion can come with greater privileges and acceptance; colonialism and colorism are part of the equation.

We often hear the expression that knowledge and/or consciousness is power, and this rang true for me because of this tour. Enslaved peoples were seen as threatening to the status quo if they knew how to read and write. They were not allowed to read or write or even possess writing instruments or learning materials. The guide drew correlations to world history, when during the Holocaust, books were burned. A culture is at risk of dying if materials such as books and artifacts are erased. Still, people learn how to resist and persist. African Americans picked up English throughout the years.

The tour guide ended his time with us by imparting the phrase and African-American proverb, “Each one, teach one.”  The message here is to not sit and stew with newfound knowledge, but share it with others. Sometimes ignorance or lack of knowledge about a topic does not mean that someone is unintelligent or uninterested. Rather, it can be because no one is willing to tell somebody else. Taking the time to teach somebody something new can pique their interest and spark that desire to learn more.

After the tour, the group met up outside to reflect on our experience. Some of us shared that we did not expect to learn so much from a tour of a church. It actually opened our eyes to a lot regarding enslavement and the legacy of enslaved African American ancestors. We had two hours of free time in the area, and a group of us ate pizza right by the church. We were at the edge of the Savannah City Market, which is a great tourist spot. I enjoyed sampling pralines.

MUNDO opens space for everyone to see and hear each other.

Back at the hotel, I took a quiz for my online courses. Then I went with two friends to walk around the area. We stopped by Walgreens, ate mini glazed donuts at Krispy Kreme, walked past Yamaha, explored Publix, almost went into Staples but found it closed, stopped into Amigo’s Latin Grocery (actually a small family-owned restaurant, not a grocery store), and went straight into Carey Hilliard’s for dinner.

I will carry a backpack with me to hold more items and prevent my one shoulder from being overburdened and sore. Additionally, I will keep my journal on hand to jot down the information provided and insights developed from the tours!

Monday, March 9th – Tours Galore

In the morning, MUNDO had some free time for us to explore. I ate leftover fried rice for breakfast. Then several peers and I took ride-shares (Lyft, Uber) to the Savannah Botanical Gardens. We spent close to an hour looking at trees. One of us had wandered off into the hiking trails so the rest of us went off to find her. This excursion aided my mental well-being since it was a peaceful environment that felt secluded from technology.

Half of us decided to immerse ourselves in nature. Not many flora was in bloom but it was still nice to see and be around the grounds.

In the afternoon, the entire group went on a Juliette Gordon Low birthplace tour. Juliette Gordon Low founded Girl Scouts in 1912 to encourage girls to discover, lead, and be their best selves. Being in Girl Scouts would also promote girls’ confidence, character, and courage. We learned about Gordon Low’s upbringing and her family. Basically in every room, there was a painting and/or sculpture of a family member; some were created by Gordon Low herself, or by her relatives. She married a multimillionaire, and the privilege and resources that come along with that did play a role in her later success.

We interacted with the table in the library room of the house.

Find out more at: http://www.juliettegordonlowbirthplace.org/en/about/about-girl-scouts-of-the-usa.html

Free time was scheduled for the rest of the afternoon. Many of us went to Tybee Beach, about 20 minutes away. We took Lyfts and Ubers to get there, and we spent a few hours frolicking on the sand and dipping our feet into the water. One student read a book and another took the time to look for shells. Later, the beach group ate dinner in the area before ride-sharing to the Ghost Tour location.

As evening set in, MUNDO did a Ghost Tour, which was thrilling yet terrifying. We rode on a trolley with a narrator/storyteller who shared some stories/legends. We stopped at the Andrew Low house and then Perkin’s and Son’s Ship Chandlery. The latter stop was truly something different.

We traveled via trolley and made two major stops. The seating was comfortable. The gnats in the air were not.


Tuesday, March 10th
 – Power of People

In the morning, the group did a small discussion before exploring the Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum. I learned that Savannah’s Civil Rights Movement differed from other movements in Southern cities. According to the museum, “…the movement in Savannah was fueled with home grown passion. It was fully organized and implemented by local African American citizens, the victims of the laws which gave people of color second class status. Outstanding leadership in the local adult and youth branches of the NAACP, the courage and eagerness of Savannah’s youth and the wisdom of local elders combined to make the quest for equal rights in Savannah, truly, a movement from within.”

From the museum’s welcome documentary and displays, I learned more about Savannah’s store boycotts that endured for 16 months! The substantial economic effects included a six percent decrease in retail sales and ultimately resulted in white business owners to start integrating their workforces. Slogans used during the 1960s included, “Don’t Shop Jim-Crow! We Will Not Shop Jim-Crow! We Must Not Shop Jim-Crow!” I learned more about the role of the Savannah branch of the NAACP. It also became clearer to me that sit-ins escalated into extreme discomfort, emotionally and physically. People would yell at the brave individuals who sat down and asserted that they deserved to be served and treated with equality. I also found a list of sit-in rules to follow. The last rule stated, “Remember love and nonviolence,” and I cannot imagine how hard it must have been to practice back in that era, which does not feel so far behind us.

Sit-in participants follow these rules while at lunch counters.

MUNDO had a few hours of break for lunch and free time. Four peers and I had a conversation over Wendy’s and then walked over to a cat café, where we made reservations. After that relaxing time, we joined the rest of the group for the museums.

For about 10 minutes, in two subgroups, we reflected over a few questions/prompts before proceeding into The Telfair Museums and Jepson Center, which contain a vast collection of artwork. There was artwork made by enslaved individuals. One of them was David Drake “Dave the Potter” (American, c. 1801-1870s). We looked at his alkaline glazed stoneware, just one of the thousands of vessels he made as a potter. “He signed hundreds of them and inscribed dozens with poems and verses.” The description also read that he was a “rare literate man,” which did raise some thoughts by members of our group. We also looked at impressionist paintings and sculptures.

We then had a special tour of the Owens-Thomas House estate. The tour guide did an excellent job at explaining the history of the house, which had a separate building designated the “slave quarters.” We saw what it was like, and how about a dozen people had no other choice but to live in such a cramped space. We learned about haint blue, which was painted around the quarters to resemble the sea that ghosts cannot cross, in Gullah culture. The Gullah are African Americans who live in the Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina. They have their own language as well.

These are some of the names of enslaved peoples that were recovered, and the empty planks are for those whose names could not be recovered. George Owens enslaved almost 400 people on his plantation, according to the plaque text.

This plaque informed of the power behind words and suggests that people choose wording carefully because of the meaning(s) and context.

The text says:
Words have power.
They express meanings, ideas, and relationships. They impact how we relate to the past and to one another.
As we share this history, we strive to use words that are empathetic to those whose history has been marginalized. For example, we use phrases like enslaved woman, rather than slave. The noun slave implies she was, at her core, a slave. The adjective enslaved reveals that though in bondage, bondage was not her core existence.
Furthermore, she was enslaved by the actions of another. Therefore, we use terms like enslaver, rather than master, to indicate one’s effort to exert power over another. You may hear other phrases, like slave labor camp or escapee, rather than plantation or runaway. These reinforce the idea of people’s humanity rather than the conditions forced upon them.

To end the evening on a more comforting note, the group headed to the famous Leopold’s Ice Cream. This place has seen patrons for over 100 years, and is one of the best ice cream parlors in the city.

Please see the next blog post to read about what happens next for the MUNDO spring break experience group, in Atlanta, Georgia!

Los Angeles Experience 2.0

I returned to Los Angeles, the City of Angels, for a week during winter break, and my final year of undergraduate. It felt like a homecoming because I went to L.A. for part of the winter break of my first year at OSU! It was with the same student organization. From that first trip, I took my first ever plane ride with MUNDO (Multicultural Understanding through Nontraditional Discovery Opportunities) and found my experience so memorable. This time around, I was ecstatic to coordinate this ten-day experience for 26 students and staff. Members of the action team met up weekly during autumn semester to plan the trip and associated MUNDO meetings. We had difficulty choosing participants because many applicants appealed to us; some had strong essays while others had a significant number of attendance points. We prioritized students who were on-campus (so they would primarily be first- and second-year students) and in certain organizations for minority students.

Our experience description was:

MUNDO invites interested participants to go beyond their preconceptions of life in the land of Hollywood, to get a deeper understanding of the cultural diversity, history, and significance of this vibrant Southern California community. As part of this experience, MUNDO will explore the connections between reflection and learning, how identity and culture affect leadership styles, and the importance of creating inclusive environments to promote social change.”

Right after Thanksgiving break, we held our Pre-Travel Meeting to introduce participants to their trip and prepare them for flying across the country. We had a number of first-time flyers! Since I was on the trip in 2016, some parts were familiar to me, but I was attentive throughout everything because even though we visited some of the same sites as before, aspects were new. I gained new pieces of information along the way.

I designed this cover page for the pre-travel meeting PowerPoint.

DAY ONE (Dec 14)
MUNDO ordered a charter bus to pick up students at three different Columbus campus locations early in the morning, before dawn. After two flights, we reached LAX and made our way to our hostel, which offers affordable stays! Guests also have free breakfast, WiFi, towels and fun events that build community and cross-cultural understanding.

Students had the afternoon free to explore the area and get accustomed to the warmer winter weather of 60-something degrees. People split off into smaller groups. Some meandered around the beach and pier and then browsed shops in the mall. My group went to eat lunch first and popped into a few stores to get a sense of the prices and products. This is the time to shop for gifts for loved ones. I made a mental note (and took photos) of items I would get later on in the week. Skincare is at the top of my list.

In the evening, half of the MUNDO group gathered to get groceries at the store Vons! I did not purchase produce because I was concerned about storage and stealing at the hostel communal kitchen. I purchased fresh and prepared foods outside instead of making my own and having to worry about storage. Also, fruits and vegetables were pricey. I bought myself drinks to quench my sweet tooth. Cravings compelled me to buy candy as well.

The rides at Pacific Park are around $10.

I ended the night by visiting Santa Monica Pier. It was just like how I remembered it from 2016. I tried a Mexican street snack called corn in a cup – fresh, warm corn with dollops of mayo, drizzled lemon juice, crumbled up cheese, and sprinkled chili powder. It was delicious!! I love supporting people of color, including those who own small food stands.

After many hours of traveling, I knew to get adequate sleep, which I had not achieved for most of the prior week.

DAY TWO
After sending out three breakfast reminders to the group, I ate cereal and milk before I boarded the bus with the group for our L.A. Insider Tour. Our tour guide showed us around the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which is about five miles long, and the TCL Chinese Theatre, which opened in 1927! The theatre was designed by a European American man and had many Chinese-looking elements, but aspects of the design to me was insulting and caricature-like. There were dragons, jade green colors, and a font that would not be used in actual Chinese culture. The man who designed this theater and other theaters such as a Mayan-themed one wanted to be more worldly and diverse, but this was not truly representative or inclusive. This was something I had not thought about before, and how people can create a structure or piece to imitate a culture without consulting people from that culture. This is important to do because it conveys respect and appreciation for said culture.

I was content finding the stars for Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee, and Keanu Reeves. Each year, there are about 300 nominations for a star on the Walk of Fame; 24 are actually produced because there are three requirements. The celebrity who gets a star must have been famous for at least five years, must schedule a ceremony, and must have $40,000 to pay for their star.

After looking at people’s stars and hand and foot prints, we drove up to Griffith Park and Observatory to see the Hollywood sign and the views of the Los Angeles Basin.

MUNDO poses in front of the Hollywood sign! No hiking required.

On the bus ride to Beverly Hills, we learned about facts related to buildings and celebrities, including comedians and actresses and actors. This community has extravagant homes. Sidewalks are clean. Potholes are nonexistent. Beverly Hills is an affluent neighborhood. The bus went past Sunset Sound and Hollywood High School. There is so much history and roots of people beginning their careers on Sunset Blvd. Meanwhile, we strolled along the neatly paved sidewalks of Rodeo Drive to gaze at the luxury clothing and bag brands in the storefronts and sportscars parked outside.

The group took a break for lunch at Grand Central Market, which was crowded and lacking an enormous amount of seating, but had an abundance of cultural cuisines. Options included Chinese, Thai, Mexican, Chilean, ice cream, whiskey, breakfast foods, fried chicken, and more. Lines were hectic and people were hovering around us to snag the table we spent 10 minutes to find. I enjoyed exploring the holiday artisan pop-up shop in the basement of the market. Some of us decided to visit The Last Bookstore in our free time as well.

One reality that we were confronted with while traveling around Los Angeles and Santa Monica was the prevalent homelessness issue. Individuals were sleeping on bus stop benches, steps of buildings, and in tents set up around highways and alleys. These people struggling with finding a place to stay were also on the Metro. Some were singing or cursing out loud. It is troubling that larger societal issues such as housing unaffordability and our unjust criminal justice system can lead to people struggling to pay rent and sustain themselves. Society should instill more compassion and understanding for these individuals who have names and lives and stories of their own. I wonder about what they have gone through. Walking by homeless people, most of us do not want to glance at them. We do not want to spare some change, because a common thought is that they will use it to feed their substance disorders. However, I have come to believe that whatever they decide to do with their money is up to them, and that they will act in their best interests. Since I am in a more privileged position, I should be kind and freely give a little bit of what I have to others. Even if I cannot give any money or share some food with people, I can acknowledge their presence and tell them, “Have a nice day.” The problem of wealth persists in the United States, and we must address how there’s billionaires and millionaires hoarding wealth when simultaneously, many people are out on the streets or couch-surfing or crashing at friends’ places. A tourist booklet I found at the hostel instructed readers to not give homeless folks money but to donate to a foundation. However, organizations’ outreach may not catch every single individual, so I still feel morally obligated to give something to someone I see. It can make a difference in their day.

DAY THREE

Our tour occurred right when the museum opened. From our visit to MOT, we are better equipped to have conversations and impact change against prejudice and towards greater tolerance of individuals of different identities.

In the morning, our group visited the Museum of Tolerance, a “multimedia museum” that “examines racism and prejudice around the world with a strong focus on the history of the Holocaust.” I have visited this museum in 2016, but this visit variated from last time. Before we were greeted by our first tour guide, the group had some time to roam around the lobby, which displayed a photo exhibit. There was a project that involved giving cameras to Palestinian and Israeli women to photograph one another and shed light on a community’s humanity and lived experiences. Some photos were headshots of individuals gazing into the camera’s eyes. One photo was of a child and a candle during a holiday celebration. I was very intrigued by this project and appreciated that these photos tell stories and help others see the lives of others who are different from them, but actually have some similarities.

Our tour guide was of Polish descent and led the group to a Point-of-View Diner. We watched a video of a news segment covering a car accident. Involved were a teen behind the wheel, his girlfriend as a passenger, and a 10-year-old girl and her father in the other car in the collision. The girl ended up dying from injuries sustained; the teenage boy driving in the other car died as well. We soon learned that the boy, Charlie, was drunk and had gotten alcohol using a fake ID that his girlfriend helped him get. The convenience store that sold him the liquor was known to let youth purchase alcohol despite being underage. Charlie’s mom was interviewed and she had no idea that her son was struggling with alcohol addiction and even arriving to school intoxicated. We all voted on the level of responsibility that each person had (Charlie, Charlie’s girlfriend, Charlie’s mother, and the liquor store owner).

The results showed that 36% of us voted Charlie as having the greatest responsibility for the accident that caused his own life as well as that of a young girl, and the injuries of others. On interactive devices in front of each of us, we then asked individuals questions about the accident to find out more information. Then we voted again, and to my surprise, the group voted less responsibility for Charlie and more towards his mother and the liquor store owner. This finding contrasts with my own perspective; even though a parent does have influence on their child’s life, they cannot know all about what’s impacting that child and that child’s decisions. A parent can provide support for them but the individual themselves should be responsible for their actions. It is sad that this case was a real story.

Speaking about the Holocaust now, I heard familiar facts, but I appreciated reinforcing the information in my head. I found it interesting that the six major camps were all located in Poland. I did not know that before. A knot forms in my throat every time I go through the events that lead up to the mass genocide of Jews, Roma (gypsies), mentally ill people, and physically disabled people. In recent years, anti-Semitism has been on the rise, in my opinion. There have been numerous incidences of anti-Semitism in America; I hear about this on the news. I am concerned that future generations will not learn about the Holocaust. Importance and relevance of this issue weighs on every individual. Teaching tolerance should be a priority for school curricula. I would like my own career to encompass education and other experiences that will help further acceptance of diversity, inclusion of various identities into spaces so that everyone can feel welcome, and equity.

Although I have not extensively watched the show “Friends,” the introductory song is quite catchy.

After the heavy topics of the morning, MUNDO had lunch in the Warner Brothers Studios café. Our time touring Warner Bros Studios was fun for everyone. The group was split in half and transported around via golf carts. We visited stages and sets of shows such as All American and Lucifer. We saw a building solely dedicated to props for TV shows and films; one giant globe was used for Doctor Strange. My favorite part was the DC building, where I saw costumes from Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Crazy Rich Asians, A Star is Born (2018), and the Harry Potter series! The experience allowed us to see behind-the-scenes of Hollywood.

On the bus ride back to Santa Monica from Burbank, we posed these reflection questions:
1) Can you recall a time when you experienced or witnessed discriminatory behavior?
2) What are some actionable steps that you can take against hate?

DAY FOUR

Homeboy Industries was our first stop of the day. When MUNDO arrived in the morning, Father Greg Boyle had a microphone in hand and was addressing the whole room: people waiting in chairs in the lobby, people gathered around in the hallways, and people looking down from the staircase leading upstairs. The facility was full and silent as Father Greg remarked on the holiday season and celebrating another year of Homeboy Industries and the growth of individuals in the program.

This man started this organization in 1988 as a way for formerly incarcerated individuals who have histories of gang activity to better themselves and live out their goals of having healthy families and achieving an education. Homeboy Industries offers classes, tattoo removal, employment, case management, and support for legal, social, and mental health matters. Other people took the mic and said other parts of the announcement. One young woman shared how being part of the program changed her life and gave her healthy outlets to release negative feelings and improve herself. The sense of community and support in the room was so palpable.

A woman explained more about Homeboy Industries to our group. She was nearing the end of the 18-month re-entry program and disclosed to us that she had stood outside the doors and hesitated to walk in on multiple occasions. She did not feel ready. But she is glad that she had taken the leap. When she walked in, she was greeted with warm welcomes and “How are you?,” all of which surprised her because she had not been treated that way before. That was the start of a journey for her. We are grateful that she shared her story as a trainee with us.

There is nothing quite like Homeboy Industries. Several students took informative brochures and reports to learn more about the program and its outcomes. I observed that different aspects of our group tour and visit appealed to the participants; one art major was drawn to trainees’ personal artworks.

https://homeboyindustries.org/

Chinese American Museum

Even though I have visited this museum once before, I eagerly soaked in the information along the gallery walls. I read almost everything in sight. This is a small building and sadly, one entire section was closed. Being able to view the art exhibit that I remembered from last time would have enhanced our experience and given students a broader understanding of art and culture. This museum is certainly worth stopping in because it paints a story of Chinese immigration, struggle and strength in the 1800s all the way to the 2000s. One wall is consumed by a life-size timeline. Several students took the time to read this thoroughly. The museum displayed artifacts such as a restaurant apron, Chinese herbs in a model herbalist/pharmacist shop, and then upstairs, Chinese-American political campaign posters and toys and firecrackers commonly played with during the Chinese New Year. Museums such as CAMLA are pivotal for cultural awareness, humility, and sensitivity and for our understanding of U.S. history, because history shapes the contemporary. My hope is that people appreciate the efforts of educating and celebrating Chinese heritage and the roles people of Chinese ancestry have taken in making the U.S. what it is today.

http://camla.org/

This museum tailors to the experiences of Chinese Americans in Los Angeles and Southern California.

Some participants expressed to us that they had not learned about the 1882 Exclusion Act. That crucial part of history is missing from many textbooks.

A few MUNDO members discuss what they would bring in a single suitcase to begin a new life in a foreign land.

After the group gathered together, we walked over for free time and exploration in Chinatown. As we made our way to the Central Plaza, a magnificent dragon gate stood out to mark the hub of activity in this ethnic enclave. People split up into smaller groups to browse the gift shops and try foods. We were responsible to take public transit back to the hostel. Chinatown sprawls across numerous city blocks and a person can spend at least a full day there. Chinatown offers restaurants, including the staple of dim sum (brunch composed of small dishes) and a new burger shop that attracts crowds, pharmacy stores, and shops selling trinkets or clothing. Along the sidewalks, vendors sell produce, freshly pressed sugarcane juice, and more. I found it fun to share some knowledge with my friend group on dim sum, sugarcane juice, and the tropical fruit rambutan, which we sampled from a friendly vendor. This past semester, social media pages I have been following have brought to my attention that L.A.’s Chinatown has faced increased gentrification and poverty among the aging population. This is troubling in terms of the longevity of this resilient community that has established roots around the time Los Angeles was founded.

http://chinatownla.com/wp1/

Reflection questions related to this day involved participants considering their preconceptions of people involved in gang life as well as what they learned about Chinese Americans, Chinatown, and Chinese culture. Additionally, we encouraged people to compare and contrast the diversity in L.A. versus the diversity in Columbus. I can say that Columbus does not appear to have Asian ethnic enclaves, but I have heard from friends that some affluent Asian American groups are in certain suburbs whereas working class Asian Americans are in other suburbs or are closer to the inner-city.

DAY FIVE
MUNDO scheduled our first free day for the halfway point of the experience. Six of us went to Disneyland! Visiting this amusement park fulfilled one of my childhood dreams! The group went to both of the parks over in Ahaheim, California: California Adventure Park and Disneyland Park.

Pixar Pier includes a ferris wheel (with cars that stand still and sliding cars), roller coasters, and a Toys-Story-themed game gallery. I highly recommend the gallery; no wonder there was a long line!

Some tips for Disneyland visitors: Bring water, sunscreen, and portable chargers! Wear comfortable shoes. Go to the back of the park to be most time-efficient. You will likely wait a while in some lines but some attractions are Single Rider, so you get through these lines quicker. An important tool to employ is the Disneyland app, which lets you view wait times, locations for bathrooms, dining and more, and see event times. The app also includes a handy map feature with a compass as well.

Our group managed to leave the hostel at 6 AM and make it to Disney before 9 AM. We did so much walking (my tracked trek was over 8 miles)! We took an hour-long Uber ride back to the hostel and arrived at 10 PM. Much thanks to “Mr. MUNDO” for guiding us throughout the two parks!

DAY SIX
The MUNDO group took public transportation to Olvera Street, the oldest area of Los Angeles. In this historic district, with museums, a gazebo, and colorful marketplace stalls, we learned about Mexican culture. We gave students about an hour or so to look around the Avila Adobe to gain a sense of what life was like in the 1800s. People enjoyed food here (I had two tacos, rice, and beans) before we met up to explore Latinx-American identity and more specifically, Chicano identity and activism.

https://www.olvera-street.com/copy-of-siqueiros-mural

This gazebo displays a nativity scene. Park benches around the plaza provide places for people to sit.

The gazebo held a nativity scene.

Touring La Plaza de Cultura y Artes was a new experience for me. I took photos of the exhibit descriptions so I could remember all of the information presented in front of me. I learned more about areas I was previously foggy or unfamiliar with: Mexico’s independence in 1821 from Spain after 40 years, the californio laborers of mixed-race descent, and the mission system as part of Spain’s colonization. Another important theme I came across was the Chicano movement, and how people formed coalitions to fight for labor laws and rights, for equitable education, and more.

I was fascinated with artist Linda Vallejo’s collection, Brown Belongings. This art collection shows visual depictions of scholarly data on Latinx people in the U.S. in the form of dots and geometric shapes on graph paper. I have not seen anything like this before. These pieces allowed me to learn statistics about Latinx population, families, political alignments, representation, and more.

Statistics that stood out to me from The Brown Dot Project were:
– 30% of the U.S. population will be Latino in 2050 (2017 data)
– 35% of Los Angeles homeless population is Latino (2019 data)
– 63% of U.S. labor trafficking is Latino (2017 data)

Another exhibit, Make ‘Em All Mexican, was creative and fresh to me. Vallejo explains that many “…depictions of childhood, religion, education, and marriage rarely reflect the realities of Latinx experiences. Instead, they portray whiteness as the norm.” She took figurines and photos and made the characters brown all over, in different shades. Some, like Mickey Mouse or Big Boy, now had chocolate brown skin. George and Martha Washington had deep, rich skin tones. Disney princesses were also painted over with brown color. Mona Lisa and even a portrait of Jennifer Lawrence from the Oscars were included in this overhaul. It really hits home that representation in media can be lacking for people of color (Latinx, Black, Asian, Arab). This dearth poses significant risk especially for youth who grow up with not many positive images of people who look like them and little possibilities for their futures. White-washing occurs a lot in Hollywood and beyond; moving forward, we all should advocate for more people of color to be in roles that they are meant to be in, and not have a white actor play them in a movie or show. Moreover, more space, resources, and opportunities should be allocated for people of color so that their stories can come to fruition. As a feminist scholar, I am very passionate about this subject. Representation is a term I will hammer into conversation over and over again because of how it truly does matter, no matter the discipline or field in life. What made this experience better was that the artist herself was at the museum walking visitors through her thought process as she created these pieces. A few students had the chance to talk with her.

http://www.lapca.org/

After an enlightening museum experience, MUNDO took a short walk to the Japanese American National Museum, the first of its kind that I have been to. The exhibition, “Common Ground: The Heart of Community,” captures 130 years of Japanese American history with a focus on the Issei (first-generation) and their families becoming incarcerated and interned by the U.S. government. This part of history is grazed, if even covered at all, in history textbooks. If only more people were aware that underlying the whole internment was a misconstrued report. What is upsetting and infuriating is that fueled mostly by racism and xenophobia, Japanese Americans were all labeled as enemies of the state after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

The next exhibit was “Under a Mushroom Cloud: Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and the Atomic Bomb.” This reflected a lot of what I saw at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum back in Japan. Often times, people hear that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed during WWII but we do not see photos of what the impacts are of the radiation blasts at the scenes of the explosions. In high school, I had only learned about the bombing but did not know how many people had died immediately, how many had suffered in the short term, or even how many people were indirectly influenced. People lost many family members and it was difficult to identify victims. I will not go into details about the suffering, but I hope that the exhibit helps people see that weapons of mass destruction are not the answer for peace.

http://www.janm.org/

After taking my time to explore the museum, with my group of friends, we browsed the shops of Little Tokyo, got ice cream, and took public transit back to Santa Monica. The travel time took an hour, I would say. The reflection questions related to this day regarded how to appreciate a culture without appropriating or commercializing it.

DAY SEVEN
MUNDO volunteered at the LA Regional Food Bank for a few hours and we finished earlier than expected! Our group was at the service site with another group and other random individuals to put food items into boxes; specifically, we made senior food kits that would be delivered to elderly folks at their homes. My group was responsible for putting juice gallons into the box. The process was intense but fun. With my group, I established a system for being the most efficient. One person would rip open boxes of juices to lay the containers out for the other two people to grab and place into the kits that would come down the line. Together, we prepared 1,512 senior kits!

At times, the packages went by too quickly and during a few instances, I could take a breath and relax.

The MUNDO group then had free time until dinner. Instead of an alumni dinner, (because we had difficulty recruiting alumni since it was so close to the holidays), we held a reflection pizza party. In the beginning, there was a woman who the program coordinator met in the hostel who stopped in to share her experiences and advice. She was a college counselor and also worked with youth experiencing homelessness.

Reflections are critical parts of any experience, school-sanctioned or otherwise. Sometimes questions make us think about topics and process in a way that we would not have done if someone had not prodded or prompted us.

Then a staff mentor for MUNDO asked questions that were to be discussed in smaller groups and answered out loud to the larger group. We discussed what we learned, what social issues resonated with us the most, what we observed, and what individuals can do to avoid “voluntourism” (defined along the lines of volunteering outside of your local area, as a tourist, in a way that is exploitative).

DAY EIGHT
Our second scheduled free day allowed people to further explore the Los Angeles basin. I went with a good friend back to Little Tokyo. We spent the whole day there, walking around the many blocks and stopping into a dollar store. At a street stand, I bought the red-bean-filled pastry taiyaki to try. I appreciated getting to spend hours in that community and see what was offered there. There were plenty of restaurants, gift shops, clothing stores, home good stores, and bookstores. Little Tokyo has attractions for locals and tourists, with authenticity and novelty. We rounded out the excursion by eating ramen. Mine was a black oil ramen, which looks different but tastes rich and garlicy.

DAY NINE
The group left the hostel for Columbus. We all brought down our sheets, pillow cases, and blankets to the front desk. I told people in the group to head downstairs at 10:45 AM and check out by 11 AM. We then stayed in the lobby/lounge room until 11:45 AM, when our bus picked us up. We got to our airport gate a few hours early but that worked out well for us since we were able to secure seats while waiting; people who arrived later had to sit on the floor. The group took two flights to make it back to Columbus, Ohio for some real winter weather, back near freezing temperatures.

DAY TEN
After an overnight flight, the group members dispersed. I waited until every participant retrieved their luggage and coordinated a ride back to campus (or home). I was thankful that I myself was able to hop into a car to get a ride to my apartment. It saved me from paying around $30 for a ride-share service.

I now tie this experience to the G.O.A.L.S. (found at https://honors-scholars.osu.edu/documents/goals.pdf)
(Once in Honors & Scholars, always in Honors & Scholars!)

Global Awareness – I gained greater global awareness about Chinese American history and Japanese American history. Additionally, my knowledge expanded greatly regarding Latinx American history, especially Mexican American, as they shaped the landscape of the L.A. area.

Original Inquiry – Along with the planning team, I developed questions to engage participants and get them to think with open-minded perspectives. Throughout the trip, I initiated conversations with different peers.

Academic Enrichment – I found that this experience supported what I was learning about in my Asian American Studies courses and even online in different Asian American-related groups and pages. There are so many individuals and stories that go unrecognized in the mainstream media and in the educational curricula, so I hope to change this and bring this information into people’s academics. I mentioned my AAS minor to the group and encouraged people to enroll in the minor at the very least, take a course.

Leadership Development – Planning this experience requires meeting up weekly with my committee and then doing work outside of that hour or two hours. I sent emails and text messages, added to our PowerPoint, and facilitated some general body meetings. I am so happy and proud of our work.

Service Engagement – We made a dent in the hunger and food insecurity issue in the L.A. basin. Thousands of older adults will receive food from the food bank. Service can always be fit into a trip. Food banks are MUNDO’s usual go-to for service.

This will likely not be my last winter break experience with MUNDO; for Winter Break 2020, we are going to Miami and I am interested in leading it!

Grad School, Semester One Done

In this post, I speak candidly of my experiences as a first-generation graduate student. As of yesterday, I have finished one semester of graduate school at The Ohio State University! I hope that I passed all of my classes. Final grades are being updated daily. I feel so relieved and want to share how the semester unfolded.

Source: Boston University

Biostatistics I was the most difficult class for me. I have made it through science and math courses before, but growing up and to this day, I am not fond of STEM courses. I am more of a humanities and social sciences person. I did appreciate and adore my biology courses, but the other sciences gave me a hard time. I had to put in more studying and seek out tutoring for classes such as Chemistry and Calculus. These subjects are complex and complicated to me. Thankfully, tutors were kind (for the most part) and teachers took time after school to explain concepts. I also have benefitted from viewing online videos to supplement my instruction. Biostatistics I was difficult and I could have done better by trying to ask for help more often. I was not reviewing the material at the end of each class; if I had reviewed more frequently, I would likely have felt more calm in the class. I was constantly stressed at the fast pace and at the amount of unfamiliar material. My study buddy group, comprised of me and a few other Master’s of Public Health students, was my savior. Up until the end of the semester, I was not sure if I would pass the class because the required grade is B-. Next semester, I take Biostatistics II, this time online.

Source: Oasis Surg

I enjoyed my Intro to Healthcare Organization class. We have lectures with a few guest lectures from professionals in the field. The class has a lot of discussion built into it, primarily at the end of a lecture. The United States does not really have a healthcare “system,” because it is so fragmented and uncoordinated. I enjoyed this course. We covered topics including managed care, vulnerable populations, access, and quality. We had six case study assignments as well as a group presentation. My group focused on access to healthcare among refugees in the United States. The future of healthcare should involve more collaborations, innovation, strong teamwork, and capacity-building.

Source: Health Workforce Technical Assistance Center

I had a Community Health Assessment class, in which I applied my knowledge and research skills to create deliverables and portfolio-ready products. My four-member group for that class prepared a 20-30 page assessment report on the Linden community in Columbus, Ohio. In this document were the following: an executive summary, community description, and summary sheets for our chosen health topics of diabetes, infant mortality, food insecurity, intimate partner violence, and poverty. We included recommendations for these issues plaguing Linden. This paper took a lot of time and effort but I am pleased with the end result! We also presented our findings in a 20 minute presentation to the rest of the class. Another fun part of the class was getting to do a nutritional assessment of convenience stores on campus; I collected observational data on what foods were available and how much shelf space they were given. I would like to do more community health assessments in the future. This class was a nice test-run/trial or introduction to the practice.

Source: Socialmarketing.blogs.com

My Advanced Disease Prevention and Health Promotion class provided me with a wealth of information regarding health behavior theories and insights into how difficult and tricky it is to change behavior, despite individuals having the intention to do so. We learned about financial incentives, ethics, social determinants of health, survey measurement, etc. A major takeaway for me was that no health theory can be used for all problems. All theories have strengths and weaknesses. I am still very interested in and invested in social determinants of health, especially for vulnerable and minority populations, including people of color and LGBTQ communities. Our class included several papers; for two of them, I was to write about a health behavior that I want to change in my own life, and I talked about personal sunscreen application. However, interestingly, I also have picked up the behavior of dental flossing because of the professor mentioning it in class many times.

Source: University of Michigan

My city and regional planning class is called The Socially Just City. I have never taken a class in that field before so it was new to me and I learned so much from the readings, my professor, and my peers. Our class gave me background information on the planning profession and its challenges with balancing interests and goals. We also went over housing, transportation equity, integration vs. separation, diversity, feminism, access, and more. We reviewed numerous case studies where socially just outcomes were not reached. This is a reading- and discussion-intensive class but you gain a lot from it! Students read essays or articles and write discussion posts online. Then we come to class, where students present vital points from those readings to everyone else and we further discuss. Additionally, groups of students write final papers analyzing interventions, policies, or plans to see if they are achieving social justice. This was challenging but I appreciated it and pushed myself out of my comfort zone. My peers provided me with feedback throughout the process.

Academically, I feel at peace with my progress. My GPA is not perfect but GPA does not matter too much. A peer had just reminded me of this and disclosed to me that she does not include her GPA on her resume or CV. It has been a rough semester in terms of adjusting to the rigors of graduate school and navigating a different culture. I do not know how many people in my cohort are first-generation college students and/or first-generation graduate students, but I felt that I had hurdles to overcome. I did not have parents who pursued higher education at all so they could not offer advice for anything. I felt imposter syndrome and that I was not as well-spoken as my peers. I could have participated in classes more, so I am hoping that I feel more comfortable sharing my perspectives because they will enrich the conversations and my peers’ minds. I hope to truly relax this winter break but knowing me, I will want to do something productive each day, such as begin searching for practicum experiences for the summer. Over break, I want to improve my writing and work on personal passion projects.

Socially, it was not until the end of the semester that peers and I got together to socialize. People are busy and also I perceived that I would not have much in common with some people. However, assumptions like this prevent me from getting to know people and finding out that even if we may not have similar experiences or interests, it’s great to learn something new. Throughout the semester, I was spending time with one peer in particular because of our shared struggles and experiences. I did make time to have fun with friends a few times each week. I saw movies, attended student organization events, and went shopping. This is necessary to stay sane and not get too drained by life. I feel affirmed that peers are supportive of me and that we are not competing with one another. I look forward to getting to know my fellow cohort members better.

Financially, I have been managing thanks to generous funding. I try to maintain my budget and check my accounts regularly. I splurged on purchases multiple times this semester because of stress. Nevertheless, I try not to shame myself for doing so but I know to better exert control. A good tip is to think to myself, “Do I need this item, or do I want it? How many times can I use/wear it?”

Mentally, I have struggled. The best methods I have utilized this semester has been sharing openly on social media, talking with friends, and speaking with my therapist. I log my emotions daily using a health app. Maintaining a journal could also be useful because I did that last school year and wrote down the highs and lows of my day as well as what was bothering me. I know I am not in this alone.

To fellow and future graduate students, it will be tough. (Some peers have said it is easy, while it is not the case for me). Something about the process will frustrate you or make you feel less than. I urge you to consider what are these challenges trying to teach you. Mentors have also asked me to think about my “Why” or my purpose for doing what I do. Why am I in public health? Why am I getting this degree? Why does it matter to me that I help further social justice and equity?

What is your Why?

SHARP – August edition

With a few weeks left in the program, it was crunch time for the scholars to finalize crafting effective and error-free PowerPoint presentations of our summer research! After months of work, including reading articles and interview transcripts, writing analytic memos, relaying progress and discussing findings in meetings, and more, the scholars will present a condensed overview of our projects at the Summer HIV/AIDS Research Program (SHARP)’s annual Symposium.

I record my daily observations to give readers a sense of what feelings were building up inside of me and the process of preparing for this major event.

8/1 – I spent more time revising my PowerPoints. I was to give one in front of healthcare providers and community members at Asian Health Services in Oakland on Wednesday the 7th, and then a different presentation (but the same material) at the SHARP Symposium in San Francisco on Friday the 9th.

When I met up with the other intern (not SHARP-affiliated) on the research project, we reviewed our slides. What quotes would be best for describing participant experiences with providers, and what recommendations would we suggest to providers? It was challenging to pick out the quotes that best suited the themes; there were so many good quotes to choose from. We assisted each other with narrowing down the choices. Furthermore, I really enjoyed working with this colleague because we got to bounce ideas off of each other and get to know each other better. It made being in a new city across the country less lonely.

It was nice to meet with my colleague at UC Berkeley’s Student Union! There’s tons of seating and windows that allow in a lot of sunlight. Source: http://www.ruthchek.com/uploads/Sproul_3.jpg

I had the most fun getting to make the PowerPoint aesthetically pleasing and complete with animations.

8/2 – SHARP had a seminar on Jail Health and HIV testing. This session encouraged me to think about resources offered in jail facilities and what opportunities existed for inmates to grow as individuals and reintegrate into society. People still have worth and potential to change their lives around, with the proper tools to do so. In my eyes, all detention centers should have basic healthcare such as toothbrushes, clean water, nutritious food, comfy beds, and preventive care.

WEEKEND

8/3 – A much needed sojourn was my day trip to Japan Town in San Francisco. There was actually a festival  that weekend so there were dozens of vendors under tents in a line down a street. People displayed art, apparel, skin care, handknit hats, windchimes, and more for sale. Children could play games and win prizes. Outside a mall were parked vintage cars for visitors to gaze inside and admire the details. By the Peace Pagoda was a stage for performers.

Walking through this Japan Town provided me with a warmth in my soul and a sense of familiarity. I gained a great deal of understanding of and appreciation for the culture during my study abroad in May, and then this small community in San Francisco still felt authentic to me in its own way. There are two Japan Center Malls: West and East. Both had a wide selection of restaurants and stores, including beauty shops (skincare, lip care, makeup), stationary, backpacks and anime merchandise, and a crepe stand.

Also worth noting is the Kinokuniya Book Store, with manga, books, and merchandise. Overall, I had a lovely and laidback experience of walking around and seeing what this community and mall had in store. I am also glad to support local business owners. I do wish that I bought art from locals!

8/4 – On Sundays, BART has limited hours and lines to get to San Francisco and I wanted to stay in the East Bay anyway. I spent a few hours admiring the murals in the Chinatown in Oakland. There is much history here and I felt welcome in the area. One of my future posts will be about Chinatowns in America and include their histories as well as my personal experiences in those spaces.

8/5 – Our final seminar was on the Origins of Black Poverty. This was one of my favorite sessions because the speaker was so compelling. She captured everyone’s attention and we engaged in discussion about the heavy history of people of African descent in the Americas and how poverty is generational. We still see repercussions of slavery and racism is alive and well, except that it is more covert and concealed. The session’s contents are what we all should be confronted with, in our school curricula and in our media. If people are not well-educated about history and a wide range of narratives, we continue to remain ignorant.

After that meeting, I conversed with a colleague via Zoom to go over our work. Then I emailed a principal investigator/SHARP leadership member my symposium slides for him to critique it some more. He said that it was more streamlined than my very first draft.

8/6 – I met up with my colleague to practice a run-through of our presentation for Asian Health Services! When we timed it, our presentation came to 40 minutes long, with each of us taking about 20 minutes to go over our respective sections. I was feeling anxiety about if I was rambling or not explaining enough, or if it would be boring to people. Nevertheless, my colleague reassured me that the presentation would go well.

For some peace of mind, I went over to Golden Gate Park. I checked this destination off of my bucket list. Starting from one end of the park, I viewed an enormous Dutch windmill and strolled along the path to look at grazing bison in their enclosure and sputtering sailboats in a pond. Also noteworthy were the Japanese Garden and the Conservatory of Flowers. I appreciated the Golden Gate Park immensely.

8/7 – After practicing my SHARP presentation in the morning at San Francisco Department of Public Health, I hurried straight over to Oakland to meet up with Dr. Tan and her other summer intern at a coffee shop. We spent a little bit getting into a positive and calm mindset. With our mentor, Ian and I got a final polish of the presentation slides. Dr. Tan emailed over a one-page table of recommendations for an Asian Health Services staff member to make copies to handout to people.

8/8 – I did another practice run of my symposium presentation in front of the director and my peers. Then I Zoom’ed with my mentor, who helped with the slides. It was truly helpful to prepare a script, slide by slide, and word for word. I made this script in a Word document, with the font size about 14, enough to be able to read while looking down from a podium. I was feeling extreme anxiety this day because literally the next day was such a major event for me and for SHARP. When I was home, I finished writing Thank You cards for some people of the program. I was instructed to practice a few more times at night and to not practice at all the next morning, because apparently you can overdo it.

8/9 – This was the day of the SHARP Symposium!
In the morning, an intern prepared breakfast for a couple of us. At SFDPH, we did more practice runs while in the conference room. My peers looked concerned and that was understandable; we wanted to do well.

The SHARP director and assistant shared some sweet mini cupcakes and a bundt cake with us that morning. Without their knowledge, the interns secretly bought bouquets of flowers for the both of them to celebrate their upcoming transitions to new chapters of their lives.

I was third in line to go up to present. I listened to my first two peers give great oral presentations. While sitting down and waiting my turn, it was difficult to stay calm and focused. When I was introduced, the director also told the audience why I pursued SHARP, which was along the lines of challenging myself and really ensuring diversity, inclusion and equity in public health.

As I proceeded to the podium, I had a shaky start and mumbled “Okay” while bracing a smile. During my practices, my peers said I had a soothing voice. I read from my script and made sure to make eye contact with people in the room. If actually looking in people’s eyes is intimidating, stare at the walls or windows. Stay poised and calm.

Seeing what my slides looked like on the actual screen before the presentation was helpful in determining if text could be seen from the back of the room. I suggest making text as dark as possible (so standard black) and bold as necessary.

When my 10 minutes were over, we opened the room to questions from the audience. There were two inquiries, both of which were from SFDPH staff. One question regarded the transgender population in my sample, and the other question concerned adolescent mental health. I responded the best I could in that moment.

Then I quickly took solitary respite in a back room since the symposium program had a break before they continued with the other three scholars. Watching the rest of my cohort present, I was so proud. My peers are so worthy of praise!

The SHARP director shared her love for SHARP. After two years of leading SHARP to great successes, she had another opportunity. She spoke words of encouragement to our 2019 cohort and her thoughts about the whole experiences. The scholars sprung a surprise on her! We introduced the bouquets and cards to the director and her assistant. It was a wonderful occasion.

After the symposium, SHARP scholars and staff had Happy Hour at the restaurant/bar called Hazel.

LAST WEEKEND IN THE BAY AREA

8/10 – For a fun excursion in San Francisco, I rounded up two friends, one being an OSU alumna who had moved to the Bay Area very recently, and my neighbor-turned-friend. We went to a Cat Cafe, the Museum of Ice Cream, and Powell mall.

8/11 – With the same friends, we scouted San Francisco Chinatown! We looked around shops, had buffet food, and watched the magic happen at a Fortune Cookie Factory. We passed by a procession of lion dancers and other people in some ceremony. We paid a quick visit to the Historical Society. I did not get to view its exhibits; I just glanced around the gift shop and briefly sat in the video room. Next time, I will spend considerable time at SF Chinatown!

LAST WEEK!

8/12 – I worked on writing a personal statement for SHARP. This short paper would be a reflection of my research internship; it would include insights from informational interviews, key skills gained, and how my experience will further my goals. I also returned my laptop to the office so future SHARPies could use it. I gave away the laptop case I purchased so that it could go with the work laptop.

The ferry was an enjoyable experience! Some people commute to and from San Francisco and the East Bay for work or school.


The group took a ferry ride over to Oakland and we shared a late lunch at a black-owned diner!

8/13 – I worked more on my CV and met with an SFDPH staff member (he was also a SHARP alumnus) for an informational interview! Immediately after, I almost missed the ferry from San Francisco to Alameda, where I would
take a break from reality with my mentor and her intern for some paddle-boarding.

8/14 – I did extensive cleaning at the apartment and then traveled to Oakland to meet my mentor at Octopus Literary Salon, which is now sadly and permanently closed. My mentor and I were on a Skype or Zoom call with fellow Asian Pacific Islander women who were grassroots organizers and activists for various rights. This organization is called NAPAWF. I will be looking further into this powerful community so I can continue to make a change and get my voice heard! I was happy to listen in on how their meeting went as they planned events.
https://www.napawf.org/

My mentor and I were joined by the other summer intern for a night of open mic. The topic was love and anyone could come up to say anything, whether it was on the spot or prepared beforehand. People shared poems, reminisced about past lovers, talked about their relationships with their parents, and sung while strumming their guitars. Everyone’s moment was different and so unique to them. It was very impactful and meaningful to be in a room with predominantly Asian Pacific Islander Americans and being open to experiencing something new and being vulnerable.

8/15 – On this bittersweet day, I met with Judy for the last time in person at UCSF. We examined our relationship over the summer and my feelings about SHARP. What aspects went well for me and what could be improved? I presented her a parting gift and returned home to pack and clean. We made plans to stay in touch and touch base during the middle of my semester at school.

8/16 – Last Day of SHARP / SHARP SEND OFF
I distributed my personal thank you letters to people around the office. I always want to leave a good impression on people and remind people of my gratitude. At our pizza party for lunch, we chatted and a staff member presented Jessica with a certificate of appreciation and achievement, and we thanked her once more for her work for SHARP.

This is the SHARP 2019 cohort and Jessica Brown, Director, and Amaka Agodi, Program Assistant. I am so thankful for those two women who serve as inspiration and icons for me!

8/17 – DEPARTURE DAY / SEE YOU LATER CALIFORNIA!

When checking out of my place, I had to leave belongings behind that I wanted to keep. However, sacrifices had to be made for the better. I felt uneasy about making it to the airport and making both of my flights to get to Cleveland. This was a full day of travel. I touched down in Cleveland around 10:50 PM. I was relieved to be home.

The very next day, I had to travel down to Columbus to move into my new apartment for the 2019-2020 school year.

Although I did not get much of a break before transitioning to another year of college, I would not have it any other way. This summer was such a fun time of exploration, insight, and discovery. I am very impressed by SHARP and how it has changed me and helped me prepare for my future. I am more confident in my ability to speak and to research areas of interest to me. I am also more confident in interacting with people. I look forward to what my friends and I will accomplish next.

All I can say is “Thank You” for a wonderful Summer 2019.

SHARP – July edition

Here is how the height of the summer – the month of JULY  – turned out for me during the Summer HIV/AIDS Research Program through the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

WEEK ONE

7/1 – Our seminar was on Good Participatory Practice in Community Based Research. I enjoyed hearing about a qualitative method called photo-voice, in which participants document their experiences and reality through photos and/or videos. Community members take an active role in the research. This is a method that is relatively new to me and I want to explore this further in my academics and career. Photo essays are something I have seen in journalism. They tell a story through photos and these can be powerful as well; they certainly catch attention more than a giant block of text. Photos help provide context and enhance understanding. Reading is one thing, but seeing for yourself aids comprehension of a topic even more. Later that day, I worked on writing more analytic memos.

Photo from United for Prevention in Passaic County, https://www.wpunj.edu/uppc/photovoice.html

7/2 – I continued my research. In the middle of the day, I spoke with my mentor about our progress and how I would prepare for writing an abstract to submit for a health disparities conference occurring at UCSF in October.
https://diversity.ucsf.edu/HDRS 

7/3 – I read articles and wrote memos.

7/4 – This was a national holiday so we had the day off, no pay. I stayed in Berkeley to explore a bit. I watched Toy Story 4 with  a fellow intern. The movie was bittersweet and marked the end of a wonderful series. Then I roamed around the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive with a friend. It’s a great resource with exhibits on Asian Buddhist art, Black and African diaspora art, and other pieces. There was political art and one section was black-and-white photos. Some pieces were very powerful. I appreciate the diverse art from diverse artists represented in this museum. It is very intriguing to see that the facility has red stairwells that contrast with the rest of the building in white and grays.

Carlos Amorales: Ghost Demonstration, 2019; acrylic on wood panel. Photo: JKA Photography.

An art wall that stood out to me was created by Carlos Amorales, an artist who works with diverse media to explore image, sign, and cognition. In the installation I saw, “Amorales revisits [Berkeley’s] unique countercultural history of the late 1960s, specifically demonstrations linked to the civil rights, free speech, and antiwar movements. He then links this history to the present by combining slogans from protests that have occurred on the UC Berkeley campus over the last decade.” Over 20 phrases are positioned around the wall, spaced out on protest signs held by figures in smudgy black outline on a light gray background. Examples: Stop! The Arms Race (1962), White Silence = Violence (2014), Make Racists Afraid Again (2017). The wall looks eerie, like people are pressed against the other side of the wall, urging viewers to look at their messages and act upon them.
https://bampfa.org/

7/5 – I worked all day on writing drafts of papers to my mentor. In the evening, I went to the grocery store Safeway with the friend I made in the apartments. She calls me her Berkeley Buddy.

WEEKEND
It feels affirming to plan what I want to do on my weekends. I post in the intern group chat what interesting events I’ve seen on Facebook and elsewhere. An intern and I went to La Peña Cultural Center, which has promoted social justice, arts participation and intercultural understanding since 1975. This day was a Birthday Tianguis for Frida Kahlo, artist who “explored questions of identity, postcolonialism, gender, class, and race in Mexican society.” At this event was food, crafts, arts and vendors in a dense space. People sold their own apparel, and I bought a shirt that said “No one is illegal on stolen land.” I tried an elote for the first time; an elote is corn on the cob, commonly sold on the streets of Mexico. Mine had some mayo brushed on top of it and something like parmesan cheese sprinkled on top, with a couple pinches of chili powder flecks to finish it off. It was very tasty! Overall I felt welcome in this cultural center and was glad to see what the facility looked like. I also got to see people in the community gather together for a good time.

A mural outside of the center shows people reaching for the stars.

https://lapena.org/

I worked on more memos and spent most of Sunday alone.

WEEK TWO

7/8 – After a nice session on Qualitative Methods with a staff member from the Substance Use Research Unit at Department of Public Health, I did more analytic memos!

7/9 – I looked at scholarly articles on acculturation to gain a sense on that process and if I could apply that to my current research, since participants often came from immigrant households and families. There are unique struggles of immigrating and assimilating and/or acculturating to a new environment and society. I know that for one participant, their mother came from Guam and did her best to assimilate and speak English and put her kids in the best schools she could think of.

7/10 – We had a seminar on Substance Use Part II with one of SHARP’s Principal Investigators. I then joined in on a meeting about one of my mentor’s many projects. This one is about Golden Compass, a program that helps older people living with HIV to take care of themselves as they are now aging.

Each of the compass points corresponds to an area of focus. North: heart and mind. East: bones and strength. West: dental, hearing, vision. South: network and navigation.

https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2017/02/405866/new-golden-compass-program-helps-older-hiv-patients-navigate-health-services 

Following that, I spent more time on the abstract. It helps to copy and paste the guidelines into the document I am working on so that I get to constantly refer to these guidelines. This particular abstract had to be all on one page, which includes any figures if I were to add them. I wrote what I could and revised on my own. Then I would send a link to my draft to my mentor so she could see and give edits and comments.

7/11 – This day entailed a few meetings. Fist I met with my mentor and her other intern Ian to discuss the research. After that I had a one-on-one with Judy.

7/12 – The group had a Qualitative Analysis session. This time, we did analysis and looked at an example interview transcript. We coded based on provided codes. I had on hand various highlighters and colored pens. Other scholars numbered codes and placed tiny numbers, similar to subscripts or superscripts, by the text. I prefer to code by highlighting the entire paragraph so I understand what the interviewee is talking about. Coding takes a significant time and requires constant revisions.

This infographic from the Internet offers a visualization of what coding could look like, but this is not always the case.

WEEKEND
I worked on schoolwork. I also spent time cleaning the apartment and restocking it with essentials. On Saturday, as per our routine, I went shopping with another intern. On Sunday, I spent most of my time at home working on research or watching TV. I find Stranger Things captivating, as it involves a good mix of humor, horror, and science fiction. The soundtrack is also worthy of praise.

WEEK THREE

7/15 – Interns submit time sheets for the previous pay period. We had the honor of hearing from about six professionals at a panel about AIDS research and practice. This was our CFAR Panel 1. I heard about careers working with trans black women, with the API population, and more. I asked the panelists about how they performed selfcare. This can be especially challenging for people from marginalized communities and if their work is emotionally intensive and very personal to them. I can say this is the case for me. Furthermore, due to being disadvantaged or oppressed in multiple areas, I find it hard to take a break and care for myself when I have to work harder to reap rewards. After this insightful panel, I was occupied with writing memos.

7/16 – More memos were written on this day.

7/17 – SHARP had a fun outing to the California Academy of Sciences! The group did more social bonding as we explored the aquariums containing fish and other marine species from all over the seas and oceans of the planet. We also experienced earthquake simulations from the 1906 and 1989 San Francisco earthquakes that set records and made remarkable impacts. The Skin exhibit exposed us to differences in skin textures from various animals. Scales, hair, feathers. Skin color and melanin were also discussed in laudable efforts to educate on human diversity.

In the afternoon, my research team held a meeting to discuss our progress.

7/18 – I had an informational interview during an office hours session with Dr. Edda Santiago-Rodriguez at UCSF. I also worked more on my abstract and my memos, all the while gathering more insights and refining them. The SHARPies had a group dinner at a seafood restaurant in Berkeley.

The 2019 cohort took this photo in an alley around the block from the restaurant Bag o’ Crab.

7/19 – During a meeting with Judy at UCSF, we again discussed how we were doing and what I found interesting from the research. We went over my abstract draft. Constant revisions are key!

WEEKEND

The apartment complex sent out a link earlier during the week to get free tickets to Alcatraz Island for an art exhibit – free ferry and admission! I quickly signed up for this opportunity. This was the Future IDs at Alcatraz Release Party, intended to reframe the narrative of reentry. Former and current incarcerated individuals designed identification cards for their future, such as a dream career ID.

This was a prompt for people to begin brainstorming and envisioning for themselves.

The IDs represent aspects of who these people are, because they are more than just a number or face. They have stories and lived experiences that cannot be assumed or told just by looking at a piece of plastic. Dozens of IDs hung like giant larger-than-human-size posters along the walls of a room (former cellhouse or some sort). These artists and some family members stood by their artworks. At a table was a draft of a booklet explaining the exhibit and its process of coming to fruition. I read this and got to understand more about the project.

People have countless identities. Some are parents too. Incarceration does not only affect the adult, but their children.

Although I could only attend a small portion of the day’s events, there was much going on. For example, parents and children with histories of incarceration shared moments of their experiences. Greetings and groundings with park rangers occurred. Pop-up stations let visitors explore the layered history of Alcatraz to look at the importance of self-determination and identity. I am also interested in the idea of reintegration and the arts. How can arts and justice be brought together and how valuable is arts programming in prisons and jails?

This ID was so creative to me. The woman created her ID like a text message conversation, and she would be a life coach to someone. She’d be a resource for someone and a shoulder to lean on for support. We all need that.

Additionally, over the weekend, I worked to polish my research abstract to keep it under a page and most importantly, cover the essence of what Dr. Tan’s research is about. I sent it to her via email for her to make comments and edits. Then I submitted it before the 5 PM deadline.

WEEK FOUR

7/22 – CFAR panel 2
This one was very interesting and it got personal. Individuals shared how they got involved in HIV work.  Topics brought up in the conversations included substance use, issues with family, acceptance for their identities, and advice for the future generation of leaders in public health and our collective fight for rights and equity. I really appreciated this session.

I worked more on my memos and filled in more of my PowerPoint to eventually present it for practice very soon. I also sent over to the SHARP director my latest CV so that it can be brought up for review at a future seminar.

7/23 – As usual, memos and PowerPoint were my priorities for the day.

7/24 – In our Career Pathways session, the program assistant Amaka explained CVs and resumes and their structure. We went through each scholar’s resume or CV as a group and made suggestions in real-time. She gave us handy resources for style and wording.

In the afternoon, I attended an Asian Community Challenging Racism seminar, with over 50 people in attendance! I am so glad that I went, accompanied by another intern and the SHARP director. On one wall was a timeline of Asian Pacific Islander American history. Visitors could place a specific color sticker along the timeline based on when their families came to the United States. So for example, since my father arrived to America in 1980, I put my dot above the 1980 tick mark. I wish I took a photo of this timeline. There were two clusters of dots; one cluster was from 1960s to 1990s. The other one was most likely around the late 1800s.

We engaged in conversations with one another about how our families got to America, what the pull and push factors were, and other topics that were guided by the session facilitators. I really felt affirmed from this session and was happy to see so many other Asians in the room and who were showing up to share their truths. I will be looking into the handouts and promoting this history in my life.

The Smithsonian American Art Museum developed this timeline of America’s history of excluding Asian immigrants. I encourage everyone to explore more about this history that is often overlooked and hidden.

Later on, I polished my PowerPoint some more.

7/25 – I had meetings with my mentor and her other intern on the API SGM project. Then I focused on my PowerPoints and memos. I was wondering how I would effectively present all the points I wanted to get across to my audience without delving too deep into details.

7/26 – The Works-In-Progress session was incredibly helpful for me in the process of developing my PowerPoint. Overall, I felt overwhelmed with the data and not sure if I was answering my research question well enough. I was nearly done reading transcripts and writing the analytic memos for them. Another concern was finding the appropriate quotes that were pithy and drove my main messages home to the readers’ minds to hopefully resonate with them and plant a seed of information. I also wondered about my presentation layout, and am very thankful that SHARP emailed some example of stellar presentations from previous cohorts.

WEEKEND

I spent my time blogging, shopping, and attending a cookout.

I spent Sunday exploring San Francisco with a friend from high school. Meeting up with him was such a chance encounter. He happened to be in the city for a conference. We went to Chrissy’s Field, the Mission District, and eating at Carl’s Jr. We didn’t do a lot but it was pleasant to catch up with him after three years of virtually no contact with each other.

A view of San Francisco from a ferry

7/29 – More Practice Presentations were required to ensure that scholars stayed on track with the upcoming Symposium. Practice is certainly something to not be taken lightly. Last year, people thought that they could ‘wing it’ but this will be evident to the audience and SHARP leadership.
Back at the apartment complex, an intern and I attended a cooking class and the council meeting, which allows residents to stay up to date on the affairs of the complex and enjoy some free food.

7/30 – I went to UCSF to work more on my symposium PowerPoint and review it slide-by-slide with Dr. John Sauceda. It was a very helpful session. After eating free lunch provided by CAPS, I continued to refine the slides. I did this when I got home as well.

7/31 – Another time sheet was due on this day. Then the group practiced presentations some more. In the evening, we did a bonding activity by attending a baseball game in Oakland.

REFLECTION

June felt lukewarm in comparison to July, when things were ablaze (figuratively). July felt more stressful because I was well into my research and reading and writing basically daily, whether it was for my research project or for my own personal endeavors. I learned so much from my research and was developing not one, but TWO presentations of findings and implications that will hopefully spark interventions and actions. This month was filled with discovery, from museum visits, candid conversations, interview transcripts, and other adventures. Many times, I was unsure of where I was going and what the eventual outcomes would be. But as I would come to understand in August, I kept an open mind and communicated concerns. I met up with individuals to discuss with them how I was feeling. Utilizing resources is so important. I also got out of my comfort zone by practicing public speaking, a vital skill that is transferable for any field. Another important reflection is that I make time to have fun. I deserve it.

A high school classmate and friend took this photo of me looking at the Golden Gate Bridge. I imagine that this can symbolize me looking towards the horizon, looking for what’s in store for me next, while still being mindful about where I am right now.

SHARP – June edition

This summer, I am blessed to have earned a spot in the 2019 cohort of the Summer HIV/AIDS Research Program (SHARP) with the San Francisco Department of Public Health! Six students were selected to come on board with SFDPH. Ninety six people applied and there were multiple interview rounds. Having applied for the 2018 cycle and not making it through to even the first round, I was pleasantly surprised and grateful for making it this far and succeeding in my search for an internship that would address my needs and interests holistically.

I applied for SHARP because of its various components.
First and foremost, it helps young and passionate individuals who come from underrepresented communities and “humble beginnings” to pursue public health careers and address health disparities. Scholars receive mentorship from multiple people, including distinguished researchers. Scholars get to work with these mentors on their projects as well as conduct their own individual projects based on their interests and skills. Weekly seminars, networking events, social outings, and field trips were also included to make for a busy but productive and prosperous summer.

In addition, this program takes place in San Francisco, a city that was ground zero for the HIV epidemic in the 1980s/90s in America. There is much history here as well as public health innovations and programs that I would not find anywhere else. Furthermore, I wanted to challenge myself by going to a different city to live and work. This opportunity would serve me well in my career advancement and exploration as well as personal development. With all that SHARP has to offer, I also had much to bring to the table: my passions, skills, character traits, and excitement.

WEEK ONE

6/1 – I flew into Oakland on June 1st, the day after I returned to the United States from my study abroad. (I saw my family for about 12 hours). The flights went well and I met kind strangers on the plane rides. From Oakland airport, I easily made my way to the BART, Bay Area Rapid Transit. The instructions given to me by my supervisor, the director of SHARP, were straight-forward. When I arrived at the downtown Berkeley station about an hour later, I then lugged my two pieces of luggage, about 40 to 50 pounds worth, while wearing a backpack and purse, to my apartment. It was certainly an endeavor but I found my way to the place I would stay for 11 weeks.

My apartment came furnished with a mattress, bed frame, desk, chair, and dresser. I had to provide my own sheets, pillows, and curtains. I could not find curtains anywhere in the area so I used a bed sheet and temporarily hung jackets and cardigans. (Amazon has great tapestries, which is where I got mine!)

6/2 – On Sunday, I tried to find a library that was open on University of California – Berkeley’s campus so I could do work, but all were closed. I discovered their student union, which was open and had a dozen students working on their laptops. I typed up a reflection essay for a grant I received for my study abroad. Then I purchased sweatshirts at a campus apparel store; the city of Berkeley was cooler than I anticipated. I did not pack as warmly as I should have.

This map of the BART system is posted online, in booklets, and displayed on the trains.

The first week of SHARP is an Orientation/Introduction week. As I was learning to use BART and adjusting to San Francisco’s and Berkeley’s different environments and weather and people, I learned about the SFDPH and what I would be doing over the summer.

6/3 – First Day of SHARP!
I was brimming with excitement and nervousness for what I consider to be my first ever internship. While I have had a myriad of experiences with research, volunteering, and work, this is my first formal internship program. I wore a striped sweater and blue slacks for my first day. Since I expected to acquire some papers for the first day, I carried my backpack.

Two other interns met up with me in the morning so we could commute to work together. We arrived early and got to meander around the blocks surrounding our office building. Then we made it to our location and greeted our program supervisor! We went around introducing ourselves. Most of the day, we went over pages of hiring paperwork and we completed online trainings related to ethical research practices, privacy and safety, and compliancy. Part of internships and jobs require intensive paperwork in the beginning!! Complete these in a timely manner and fill them out accurately. Truly take the time to look it over and understand what the papers involve.

We had to fill out tax forms as part of our employment. As young adults, the process can be confusing. Do not hesitate to ask others for help!

6/4 – We had a meeting with two SHARP alumni. This was very informative and they told us candidly about their experiences. Some important tips for surviving and thriving in SHARP are to do self care, and schedule that in if needed. Reach out for support from your cohort. We are in this together and we can help each other out.

6/5 – On this day, we received an intro to public health and to SFDPH. We also received a tour of the building. SFDPH has different divisions and centers, so it was a good exposure to see how the department’s individual units operate.

For lunch, scholars and most of the mentors had a meet and greet lunch, which was pizza from The Market.

6/6 – The scholars toured the San Francisco City Clinic, which has served the Bay Area since 1911 by providing affordable sexual health services to all in need. Our tour guide was a practicing physician who encouraged us to ask questions and also asked us questions to test our knowledge and critical thinking. I learned new things from this experience, including increasing my awareness of the types of testing for different STIs.

Some fun facts:
– Those who are diagnosed with HIV get placed into care within five days of diagnosis.
– Chocolate agar helps gonorrhea cells grow and the other bacteria dies so that technicians can determine if someone has gonorrhea or not.
– I heard about the 2-1-1 method for PrEP the first time.
“PrEP 2-1-1 is named for its schedule of dosing: 2 pills are taken 2-24 hours before sex, 1 pill 24 hours after the first dose, and 1 final pill 24 hours later. Clinicians only recommend PrEP 2-1-1 to people having anal sex, since the medication may not reach high enough levels in vaginal or front hole tissue.
Remember: It is important trans men, women and other people with vaginas or front holes to take PrEP every day as prescribed in order for it to offer full protection..” Source: https://www.sfaf.org/resource-library/prep/
– People get two tests to confirm that they have HIV. If the first test is positive, a second test is done to confirm.
– I also heard about dark-field microscopes for the first time! Specimens appear bright against a dark background

http://sfcityclinic.org/

Next, we walked to Ward 86 at San Francisco General Hospital, where we met up with Dr. Phillip Coffin, a Co-Principal Investigator of SHARP, to discuss HIV and STIs and his experiences as a physician related to the field. This ward was the one of the first to treat patients during the HIV/AIDS epidemic and is renowned worldwide for care and research. As Dr. Coffin spoke, I tapped away at my phone to take notes.

Here are several facts I would like to share:
– HPV (human papilloma virus) causes cancer such as cervical cancer, but rates of this cancer are already plummeting “fabulously,” says Coffin. He thinks pap smears will be unnecessary later on down the road.
– Hepatitis B and C can also cause cancer.
– I heard about Castleman’s Disease for the first time; this rare disorder can affect people of any age but usually people middle-age and up.
– Repeated constipation can lead to colon cancer.
– Cancerous tumors can be solid or liquid. Liquid tumors are blood tumors and can be everywhere, since blood runs throughout the body. Leukemia and lymphoma would fall into that category. There tends to be higher cases of lymphoma in people living with HIV. For liquid tumors, full body therapy is needed. I can imagine it takes such an enormous toll on the body.

Source: AIDS Info, NIH.gov

– HIV first tries to go towards the gut and attack the large amount of immune cells there.
– Acute HIV can mean CD4 cell counts drop significantly, and the diversity of immune cells get wiped out. The human body is then at higher risk for different viruses and it cannot remember what it has been exposed to.
– Two people have been cured of HIV through stem cell transplants that are very invasive and fail most of the time. Some people may have died trying to get transplants. There must be a genetic match. White blood cells get taken out and stem cells get put in.

https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2011/06/104005/sfghs-ward-86-pioneering-hivaids-care-30-years
https://zuckerbergsanfranciscogeneral.org/

6/7 – Our morning session entailed an Intro to Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present, by Harriet A. Washington. Before this meeting, scholars read the first few chapters of the book as well as a scholarly report on the state of Black Americans and their health in America, tying in impacts related to education, morbidities and mortalities, and housing. We spoke about what we found salient or shocking from the readings.

This book may come as a shock to many people, but it is necessary to bring this into conversations to create social change that is deserved by affected communities.

The contents of the book were not entirely new to me, as I had learned a bit about exploitation of Black Americans’ bodies throughout America’s history during my schooling so far. Nevertheless, I was deeply frustrated and troubled at how physicians and other stakeholders in the slave trade exploited Black Americans’ bodies for not only labor, but for medicine. These enslaved peoples had no rights or say in what was to happen to them; they were stripped of their dignity and oftentimes their clothes. It was horrifying to read the book and visualize in my head the unspeakable atrocities committed by folks who believed in white supremacy, eugenics, racism, and more.

Despite white people in America viewing Black Americans as inferior in intelligence and other attributes, and of a different species entirely, these racists were fascinated by Black bodies and wanted to do research on them to help forward medicine. They wrote about their findings in medical journals that were only accessible by white male doctors. Many of their arguments for the experimentation and exploitation were illogical; if Blacks were nothing like whites, how could the research results be applicable or translated?

I am slowly getting through the book. It evokes much emotion out of me and I hope that others read this book to understand more about America’s history and how the field of medicine has benefited greatly from unwilling bodies. It really makes people think about the narratives we are told in school and what was hidden.

In the afternoon, we toured Gladstone Institute on UCSF’s Mission Bay campus. The afternoon was divided into visits to different labs. We spoke with researchers and interns at the facility.

Science is such a broad field and a degree leads to nebulous pathways.

https://gladstone.org/

WEEKEND:
By the end of the week, I was relieved.
On Saturday, I tidied up the apartment and while helping to water plants and weed the gardens, I made a friend in my apartment complex. It turns out that she is an intern at Gladstone for the summer, so I will see her around! We later went out for a meal, explored the area where we were living, and got bubble tea. That evening, I did laundry.
On Sunday, I attended a BBQ at the house of one of the SHARP mentors! It was a great opportunity to relax in an informal setting and meet working professionals. I also read part of a manual on HIV.

This weekend, the Bay Area underwent a heat wave that warranted a public health alert in advance. SFDPH employees and interns received emails warning us to prepare for the wave.

The CDC provides an infographic for heat protection!

WEEK TWO

6/10 – Today’s session was Introduction to Research Concepts. It was presented at a calm pace and I felt relaxed. Research is divided into qualitative and quantitative methods; a combination of these two is called mixed methods. I liked that numerous examples were given.

We took a trip to UCSF for a quick tour of the medical center and its cafeteria, and the CAPS floor in Mission Hall.

https://prevention.ucsf.edu/

6/11 – At UCSF Mission Hall, I attended my first Town Hall meeting.

Then I met my mentor for the first time! I was ready with a list of questions to ask her regarding her personal life and her professional trajectory. We went over our Mentor and Mentee Agreement. We discussed goals, expectations, modes of communication, and what we plan to do over the summer – that is, what project(s) we work on and what outcomes to expect by August. I scanned this document and copied it to my mentor and to my program supervisor for their records. My mentor and I scheduled our meetings for the next two weeks.

6/12 – The Substance Use Pt 1 session was informative and eye-opening.

Swapping common phrases that stigmatize people who use substances can make a profound impact on public perceptions and subsequent actions from individual to institutional. Photo from https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/topics/addictions/

We got our SFDPH badges! We also took group photos and individual headshots. These photos will be used in a flyer to advertise for SHARP’s symposium in August.

The SHARP cohort is looking sharp! Fun Fact: City Hall was rebuilt after the great earthquake and fire in 1906. It took two years to finish this current building.

Scholars gave mini presentations on ourselves and things we liked or are passionate about for a maximum of 5 minutes. I talked about some of my favorite foods, musical artists, and TV shows. Another scholar discussed his involvement with sex education during college and how that experience has shaped his career aspirations. Another peer described the places she wanted to visit in the future. One of my peers shared her YouTube channel and how her videos center around lifestyle, including her dorm room in college, her outfits, and her spring break. Next, a scholar talked about his personal life and the different identities/roles he has as a brother, student, and more. Finally, a peer discussed his involvement with a summer program that prepares high school students to be community leaders and competitive applicants for college! These presentations were personal and fun.

6/13 – This day was spent doing readings and taking notes.

6/14 – On this day, scholars submitted timesheets to be approved so that we can get our paychecks on time! Our morning session was a presentation by a former SHARPie and current community programs manager of Bridge HIV, which is based in our building of SFDPH.

According to their website, Bridge HIV is “a global leader in HIV prevention research, working with Bay Area and international communities to discover effective HIV prevention strategies.”

Bridge HIV is a grant-funded research unit that seeks to find ways to prevent HIV infection and related diseases both locally and globally. From what I understand, Bridge has different clinical trials as well as different phases of research studies to eventually discover a vaccine or some type of preventive measure like PrEP.

In the evening, after work, I watched a nature documentary called The Serengeti Rules (2018) with another scholar and her mentor. I was thankful to have been invited to this screening, which was special as one of the scientists featured in this documentary was able to attend this event and answer questions from the moderator and audience. I learned new things about keystone species and more about different types of animals like sea otters, urchins, kelp, and wildebeest.

This beautiful film captures different ends of the world and allows us to view some of the most rare and vulnerable species. It sheds light on the interactions between species and the influence of human behavior on entire ecosystems.

WEEKEND: On Saturday, I completed three hours of work shift around the complex. I vacuumed carpeted hallways and weeded a small section of the garden in the back. After that, I went thrifting with a fellow Scholar. This lasted for hours and I have a newfound love for Buffalo Exchange, which offers affordable and trendy clothing! (Tip: Bring a reusable bag with you at all times! My clothes fit into my tote so I didn’t have to purchase a bag). My friend and I then tried Bongo Burger for dinner. It was a productive day since I added to my professional wardrobe. Sunday, on the other hand, does not stick in my memory.

WEEK THREE

6/17 – SHARP’s session on HIV 101 took place at GLIDE, about 20 minutes away from the office. Since 1963, GLIDE has served people in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco with compassion and care, along with social justice in mind. Their services are far-reaching and address the social determinants of health that every individual needs, such as food, housing assistance, healthcare, and family services. GLIDE aims to address and alleviate poverty and overall suffering.

What I got from this session was that people living with HIV take three pill regimens. In the 1990s, it used to be 15-20 pills. Some people still take quite a lot of pills. In 1993, medications for children living with HIV came about. People also donate their bodies to science to help scientists find a cure for HIV.

More information: https://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/care-and-treatment-children-living-hiv
https://aidsinfo.nih.gov/understanding-hiv-aids/fact-sheets/25/82/hiv-and-children-and-adolescents

GLIDE’s logo is an orange heart. This organization wants to have an unconditionally loving community.

https://www.glide.org/

6/18 – I spent most of the day reading more chapters of Medical Apartheid and enhancing my knowledge of the unjust medical history of America. In my notebook, I jotted down powerful points and facts. However, that day, I had trouble concentrating and felt so fatigued. My self care skills are not up to par. Self care is important at any stage of life, and it is increasingly difficult to perform and maintain as a person gets older and more independent.

6/19 – We had a Meet and Greet with other interns from the Department of Public Health. They are at different buildings in the city, but within walking distance. We did a familiar icebreaker called Concentric Circles. One set of people stood in a circle facing outward. Surrounding and facing these people were the other set of interns and staff. This outer circle of individuals would rotate around to the next person after each round. Some questions that were asked were: “When did you first notice your race?,”  “Talk about an instance when you were stereotyped,” “Describe the neighborhood you grew up in,” and “Describe who you were taught to trust and not to trust growing up.” These questions were

This diagram illustrates Concentric Circles. The “B” group remains in their spots while the “A” group members rotate. Sometimes people use numbers 1 and 2 instead of letters.

Following the activity, I briefly stopped at a Juneteenth rally at City Hall’s front steps.
Then I attended a Juneteenth feast and celebration at UC Berkeley’s Black Resource Center.

For more information on this holiday: http://juneteenth.com/
That afternoon, I bought more work-appropriate shoes but later on did not like them. Tip: Always keep the receipt!

6/20 – I spent a good portion of the day at UCSF. There, I had an informational interview with a researcher who worked with my mentor on a research project before. She provided some tidbits of advice from her experiences so far. One piece of wisdom she shared was that confidence is key.

Right after that, I went to an office hours/working session with Dr. Conroy. She is one of the SHARP mentors for this year. The mentors for the 2019 cohort want to be accessible to the other mentees, not just the scholar that they are spending the most time with. They are trying to be a team of mentors, and since some mentors are out of the office at different points during the summer, the mentors want to make sure that there is at least one mentor that the mentees can seek out and talk to about their research progress and other concerns. Dr. Conroy gave us a refresher on Dedoose.

After having lunch at the medical center cafeteria, I met with my mentor. We discussed the projects and my thoughts on the readings and then she assigned new tasks for me. When I write down notes from our meetings, I use a highlighter to underline the “action items.” I also got access to the Drop Box to access transcripts, the codebook, and analyses.

That evening, I did my best to prepare my 5Ws and 1H for the Works In Progress session the following day. By this time, scholars are expected to know what their research question is (or some ideas for it), who are the participants being studied, what type of research it is (qualitative, quantitative, etc.), when the study was conducted, where it took place, and why this research is relevant and valuable. Furthermore, how did the research happen? For example, were there questionnaires or focus groups?

Remember these words when researching a topic!

6/21 – During our Works-In-Progress session, led by Jonathan, each scholar took a turn at explaining their project. As a scholar talked out loud, Jonathan wrote an outline on the white board. He asked us questions to gain clarity and to help us think about our projects. He offered us suggestions for going forward with our research.

After the session, one of the scholars and I had lunch while watching the movie Naz and Maalik. This 2015 American drama film covers a summer afternoon of two closeted gay Muslim teenagers. These two fall under suspicion of an FBI agent. People affiliated with SFDPH attended this film and some remained for the discussion afterwards. One point made was that the teen boys were both black, which was visible to others. One wore a headpiece that indicated to others that he was Muslim. It was likely a combination of these two identities that made the FBI agent weary of these teens and wonder about their actions or intentions. This was a very interesting film and throughout it, I was on edge because I was nervous that something unfortunate would happen to these two young men who can attract negative attention just for their identities. In American society, certain identities such as Black Americans or Muslim Americans can be targeted and perceived to be threats to safety and wellbeing.

In the evening, I went looking for clothes by myself in a shopping center in San Francisco. I had to return home before it got dark.

WEEKEND:

6/22 – After doing homework, I did laundry, which I designated for Saturdays.

6/23 – My Sunday was super fun and fulfilling, as I was able to visit numerous places on my bucket list. My oldest cousin flew in to enjoy San Francisco and we started by looking around Chinatown. We ate dim sum for breakfast in one of the parks where elderly folks gather to play chess and joke around. We looked around in some stores and got bubble tea. We also went to Fisherman’s Wharf, Lombard Street, Ghirardelli Square, and Palace of Fine Arts. All in all, I walked 9.7 miles! From this excursion, I saw different parts of San Francisco. I really liked Chinatown and will return to explore more of the culture and community.

WEEK FOUR
6/24 – The group had a Stats 101 session! Sometimes there’s statisticians for research teams but it’s always helpful to be familiar with statistics to do yourself.

After lunch, I had a one-on-one check-in with Jessica, my supervisor. Then I resumed my research.

6/25 – We had our first payday! I was very thrilled to hear that. I had a morning meeting with my mentor and another of her summer research interns at Asian Health Services, a community health center in Oakland’s Chinatown. AHS was established in 1974 and primarily serves Asians and Asian Americans, but they will not turn away people of other races who are seeking care. Services range from behavioral to family planning to urgent care. Since 1985, AHS has operated an HIV program. My mentor, colleague, and I spoke with the HIV program manager to gain an understanding of what AHS is, what their HIV program does, and the demographics of the communities they work with.

AHS has evolved from a one-room clinic to a comprehensive health center. https://asianhealthservices.org/history-of-ahs/

6/26 – After our Quantitative Research session, I worked more on my PowerPoint and research.

6/27 – I met with my mentor at UCSF to touch base on my progress and my questions. Then we held a team meeting, where we went over an interview transcript in detail. My mentor gave us more assignments and deadlines for them. Right after lunch, I had another one-on-one meeting with my mentor to continue asking her some questions. She shared her experiences and insights regarding the path of Ph.D. and being a researcher whose salary is dependent on grants. This talk gave me more to think about as I contemplate what my steps following graduation could possibly be.

At the end of the day, I went with three other SHARPies to a Pride Nightlife event at California Academy of Sciences!  For a few hours, we promoted Bridge HIV by recruiting a target population for HIV prevention research and increasing people’s awareness of their organization, their work, and most importantly, HIV and sexual health. We had a spin-the-wheel where we asked people trivia questions in order to get water bottles and T-shirts.

6/28 – Mini Presentation Day!
Each scholar was to present a PowerPoint on their research project for no more than five minutes. We went in the order that we are to go in for our actual presentation on Symposium Day, August 9th.

Our mini presentations went well! I am very impressed by my peers and they motivate me to be my best self. After each scholar was done speaking, we clapped and asked questions about the project. Next, we provided positive feedback and shared what we liked. Then we offered opportunities that we saw for improvement. We critiqued on PowerPoint layout, fonts, images, colors, presentation style, eye contact, body language, and other factors. This session was something I was internally groaning about, but it went better than I thought.

There are countless templates on Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides. Scholars are required to use a template provided by the SFDPH. Nevertheless, our slides will still differ from each individual!

On my turn, I stayed under the time limit. I felt like I kept a good pace and did not glance at the slides too much. Some takeaways from this first round was that I could add more visuals to some slides, which I agree with. People liked that I began by defining the populations I was studying. Somehow I also maintained a pleasant smile on my face during my talk. This session was great practice and I know I will improve from here on out.

I remained at SFDPH to do work. In the evening, the six scholars and four people affiliated with SHARP relaxed at a Happy Hour event. This was a casual space and we discussed music, fashion, and careers. I think this was my first time going to a Happy Hour. The rest of my night was calm; I spent time typing up this blog post.

WEEKEND:
6/29 – I went thrifting at different stores along Telegraph Avenue. Buffalo Exchange holds strong as my favorite. Afterwards, I tried Uji Time Dessert’s ice cream with a scholar and had a nice conversation.

6/30 – San Francisco Pride was an exciting experience to be a part of! A peer did my makeup for the festivities and our group headed to our designated area. SFDPH was Contingent 11 this year, whereas in previous years they were placed farther behind in the parade formation. By the time we met up with the rest of the department, T-shirts had already been distributed and we took the leftover size XL shirts. We had materials to pass out to the crowds: condoms, lubricants and hand towels. Eventually we took off for the march/parade, which lasted a few hours. We had several stops along the way. To pass the time, people from our group and other groups danced.

The colors of my dress (blue, white, pink) correspond to the transgender flag, except my stripes do not align in the order of the flag’s colors.

Five out of six scholars marched in the parade!

Absent is one of the scholars. We are joined by Jonathan, one of the Co-Principal Investigators of SHARP!

JUNE REFLECTION

What an eventful June! I cannot believe that a month of the program has passed. I really appreciate the chances I have gotten to talk with people about their experiences and outlooks on life. At this point, I look to honing in on my research, narrowing down my research question, and continuing to take life one day at a time, and one step at a time.

Some peers asked me if I could see myself living out in the Bay Area in the future. When envisioning it, I do not know about that. While I have experience taking public transportation throughout high school and college, in Ohio as well as Chicago, NYC, and Japan), I wonder if I can take it daily for work. I am concerned about poor sanitation, lack of adequate air conditioning, noise, potential hearing loss, crowdedness, unpleasant smells, and long commutes.

Nevertheless, the sessions throughout the summer are constructive and productive and I enjoy exploring the Bay Area. I wonder what the next month will bring.

Comparing America and Japan

I had a fascinating and fantastic experience in my study abroad program to Japan this May 2019. As part of the program/course, I wrote a blog post on any topic of my choosing related to Japan. I chose to compare & contrast some aspects of life in America and Japan.

Here are my top 20 differences between the two countries based on my observations of transportation, people, and my experiences at the University of Tokyo and Azabu University:

TRANSPORTATION

All of Japan seems to be connected by transportation!
Japan’s transportation system to me is very complex, detailed, and efficient. There’s city buses, the bullet train (shinkansen), local trains/subways, and rapid express trains. It was intimidating to me at first because of all of the different lines and signs, but maps are helpful and so are the Japanese. Even when my friends and I were looking down at our phones for Google Maps, a few elderly individuals approached us to ask if we needed help. The transportation gets you places quickly too. Trains and buses come on time.

A map of the Tokyo Metro subway system. Source: Tokyo Metro

What plays a role in the efficiency is that people form lines for boarding transportation. In America, people form clumps or clusters, and not organized lines like in Japan.

Public WiFi is available almost exclusively at train stations in Japan.
It is extremely difficult to find WiFi to access at restaurants or stores, which is why tourists are suggested to purchase a pocket WiFi to have on hand when traveling. Meanwhile in the U.S., many places have WiFi. Not having widespread WiFi can be a barrier for travelers on a budget, because mobile routers are around $100 or more.

Connecting to WiFi is a process that often involves registering with an email address and clicking through pages of terms and agreements.

Japan’s transportation vehicles are so much cleaner and nicer than America’s. In Japan, subways and buses are brightly lit and have no litter at all. The stations in Japan are also incredibly well-kept. I usually see workers sweeping the floor in the stations to keep it clean and dust- and dirt-free. Meanwhile in America, I have seen stations visibly grimy; some have the wretched smell of urine. People did not clean up after themselves. I was so impressed by Japan’s transportation systems.

The shinkansen is roomy and very comfortable!

Buses in Japan have some differences; in some buses, you board in the front and pay the fare up front whereas in others, you board in the rear and pay as you leave from the front. From my experiences taking buses in America, I always board at the front of the bus and pay upon entering.

Japanese train/subway platforms often have gates to prevent people from getting onto tracks and rushing into the vehicle. These gates can prevent injuries and deaths. University of Tokyo students mentioned to me that some individuals die by suicide from getting hit by the subway/train. This is a troubling occurrence and relates to public health, as it is a population problem and social issue. Many Japanese in white-collar work are overworked and stressed to the point where they are pushed over the edge. From hearing these anecdotes, gates are one way to stop people from physically coming into contact with trains as they approach the platforms, but broader intervention must be done to treat people’s mental health, and the multiple factors behind their depression. On the other side of the world, American subway platforms do not appear to have these gates, from what I have seen. In my home country, train suicides are not a concern like in Japan. America does have incidences of people falling onto the tracks, whether it’s because of overcrowded platforms or people pushing each other.

These barriers hope to protect people from accidental as well as intentional injuries and deaths. These doors help with human health and help lessen train delays. Source: The Japan Times

In Japan’s subways, some cars are designated as “Women-only” during certain times of the day, as marked by the pink signs on the windows. Only women can enter these cars. Children are allowed in as well. This action is meant to address molestation on trains. When train cars inevitably get crowded and reach up to 250% capacity during rush hours, men and women are literally touching each other. This can be very uncomfortable. Therefore, “women-only cars” aim to create safer environments for women, and I have not experienced anything like it in the U.S., which is something we could consider.

In Japan, subway tickets get taken back by the machine, which can reduce waste! In Cleveland and Columbus, where I’ve taken public transportation, people can keep their train and bus tickets. These people could throw these tickets away and not necessarily recycle them. I feel that Japan recycles their tickets. In Japan, citizens can use plastic electronic cards to swipe through; during my program, we use the Pasmo card, which can be reloaded at any time. A smart card like the Pasmo can be found in some U.S. metropolitan cities, like Chicago or Los Angeles, but this is not widespread for all American cities. I would like this to be more prevalent so we can reduce the waste spent on making physical tickets.

I just tap my Pasmo card against the reader on the gate and it lets me pass through!
Source: Japan Rail Pass

A striking contrast is that Japan’s roads are paved so well and smoothly. I have not seen a single pothole in the country, whereas in the United States, potholes are aplenty, especially in Ohio. Potholes and general wear and tear of the roads make driving challenging; drivers have to maneuver around holes and their tires also take a toll. It is a public health hazard for drivers!

Sidewalks in some smaller cities are marked by lines.

Sidewalks can be uneven and people can trip if they are not looking or stepping carefully enough, in both Japan and America. On our walk from the National Olympics Memorial Youth Center to the Yoyogi-koen Station, several of my peers have tripped at night from bumps in the sidewalk. This bumpy sidewalk can be a public health hazard to pedestrians, but injuries would not be too serious aside from scraped knees. Likewise, many sidewalks in America are not smooth or even, due to poor construction or just erosion from time. Sidewalks can rise at certain points and resemble stairs. Sometimes, sidewalks are nonexistent. These sidewalks would not be stroller or wheelchair friendly. Overall, Japan’s sidewalks have been great.

Speaking of the walk from our hostel to the station: when it is nighttime, I turn my phone’s flashlight on to light the ground and see where I am walking. More street lights could be implemented in certain areas for safety. Trees do line the paths, which are good for the environment and aesthetics, but can obstruct any lamps if there were any. Similarly, the U.S. could also add street lights in neighborhoods. This last school year, I walked 15 minutes from the bus stop to my home off-campus, and I felt slightly fearful. Back then, I turned on my phone’s flashlight too to help me see where I was going because it was so dark.

Bike racks by Japanese stations and universities can hold hundreds of bikes, which amazed me. In America, bike racks do not hold nowhere near that capacity! At my school, The Ohio State University, we need more bike racks. With 60,000 students enrolled at my school’s main campus, there should be a greater capacity for bikes. Having more spaces for bikes and scooters would be beneficial and encourage students to be more active while reducing their carbon footprint and emissions.

This is a massive area for bikes outside of a station near University of Tokyo.

PEOPLE

Japan is a relatively homogenous country when it comes to races and ethnicities.
As my peers and I were visiting cultural and historical landmarks, Japanese primary students were excited to see Westerners and foreigners. They took the opportunity to practice their English that they’ve been learning since elementary school. Some youth said to us, “Nice to meet you” and “Hello.” Meanwhile, America is very multicultural, with Americans hailing from hundreds of various races and ethnicities. It was a culture shock to come to Japan since it was the first time I went to a non-Western country and the first time I have ever been to Asia. It was also interesting though that Japanese advertisements/billboards have European/Caucasian American models.

Japanese people are very polite and respectful, and I do not see the same levels of etiquette in America. For example, when taking public transportation, Japanese are more mindful of space. They give priority seating to elderly, pregnant women, injured people, and people in vulnerable conditions. Two schoolboys were insisting on giving my peer a seat on the train, but she wanted them to take her spot. It was a cute encounter and an example of courtesy.

UNIVERSITY

Costs of going to college can differ drastically in Japan and in America. According to University of Tokyo (UTokyo) students, tuition is $5000 US dollars for the whole school year. At OSU, in-state tuition is about $10,000, so double that price! The UTokyo students went on to say that there is no tuition difference for out-of-state students or international students. Regardless of background or status, everyone pays the same tuition. (I wish that I had asked about scholarships for students who are low-income.)
https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/university-of-tokyo-500

At Azabu University, a student told me from his research that more than half of university students live with their parents. Living in dorms are rare. Some students live in small apartments, which he said was 600 yen on average per month for rent. This is a contrast to OSU, where it’s mandatory for students to live in dorms for the first two years of undergraduate. (There are exceptions to this rule for students already living in Columbus, transfer students, etc.)

HEALTH

Japanese carry around handkerchiefs for restrooms
, which often lack paper towels and hand dryers. This reduces waste and saves energy. It is also more sanitary than drying our hands on our clothes or flinging our hands. Our professor, Dr. Ibaraki, or as we call him, Ibaraki sensei, gave each of us a handkerchief with patterns of Mount Fuji. Likewise, people do not blow their noses in public because the noise can be distracting or a nuisance. It is a social norm to instead dab at the nose with a napkin or handkerchief.

Many Japanese wear surgical masks that cover their mouths for several reasons. While some may wear these face masks for fashion (the masks can come in different designs), there are practical purposes for their use. These masks can protect against the spread of germs. People who are sick and wear the masks can help prevent others from becoming contaminated. Additionally, people wear masks to reduce exposure to pollutants in the air.

Source: Pixabay

In terms of body size, Japanese people tend to be more petite. I occasionally see overweight people and a few obese men. Generally speaking, Japanese are much more healthier looking than Americans.

Japanese people appear to be more physically active compared to American counterparts. I saw people of all ages riding bikes and walking. Elderly people get up around sunrise to hike and jog in the local parks. There’s ample space for bikes in the city. The country is not built for many cars. Additionally, people do considerable amounts of walking by taking public transportation. According to my public health studies, the built environment (how cities are designed and laid out) play significant roles in how people live their lives and their health habits.

Japanese women use umbrellas for shade from the sun’s UV rays; this does not happen in the U.S.. The Japanese women want to avoid tanning and increasing their risk for skin cancer. Furthermore, beauty standards prefer lighter skin and complexions as opposed to darker skin. However, Japanese men can be tan; I have not seen a Japanese man use an umbrella on a sunny day.

CONCLUSION
From my few weeks in Japan, there is a multitude of aspects to compare and contrast. The transportation sector was very unique and insightful. It appears that transportation is very efficient and stream-lined. People are able to travel throughout Japan within hours. The built environment of cities also contributes to people being physically active. Mothers ride bikes with babies in attached carriers. People walk their dogs. Sidewalks and roads in general are smooth. There are trees and flowers everywhere, so people get to enjoy nature and breathe cleaner air. College is affordable for students from different backgrounds. Students live with their parents for the most part to save money and to be with their family. Japanese people also take better care of themselves, and their lifestyle and cultural factors contribute to their health. They take public transportation daily and protect themselves from germs and the sun. Overall, the way that society is designed in Japan helps people maintain good health and community relationships.

Junior Year Timeline

My junior year at The Ohio State University was full of growth and discovery. I arrived to campus more confident in myself and ready to tackle harder classes that covered more complex concepts. I also had leadership roles on campus, which helped me learn more about leadership. There was so much to do and I did struggle so much throughout the year, with handling my responsibilities and trying to do self care. Looking back at the year, I am very impressed at what I accomplished. It is difficult to remember all that happened, but this list shows the breadth and depth of what I do as a student!

Autumn 2018

  • Spoke on my research experiences to about 30 first-year OSU students who are also Young Scholars in a Research Methods class (within a Summer Bridge Experience program) and answered questions about college, in early August
    • Presented information on Summer Research Opportunities Programs (SROPs) and briefly shared my own experience with them about University of Iowa SROP
    • Presented my own research poster from the summer and provided students with advice on poster construction and layout
    • Shared what interview coding was
  • Served on student panel for the Young Scholars Program’s IMPACT Day for second-year scholars
    • Spoke about my experiences during the summer, with particular attention to Summer Research Opportunities Program and how it helps first-generation college students and students from historically underrepresented backgrounds
  • Served as Public Health Student Ambassador for College of Public Health’s BSPH New Major Orientation
    • Assembled Safe Point kits for Equitas Health while mingling with newly accepted students into the Bachelor of Science in Public Health major
  • Selected as student representative from Young Scholars Program to present speech at Office of Diversity and Inclusion New Student Convocation
    • Presented 7-minute speech detailing my experiences with the specific ODI program I am a part of, how YSP and ODI as a whole have helped me throughout my life, and some of my accomplishments in college thus far.
    • There were about 500 students expected to come; since this was not mandatory, not everyone made it but there were at least 100-200 who did attend. I helped get these first-years excited about college.
  • Received additional support from my Student Success Specialist
    • Attended mandatory meetings and open office hours to discuss my goals for junior year and receive advice about various issues related to college and life in general.
    • My specialist is another resource for me at OSU, which is assuring for me emotionally and academically
    • I suggest to others to not hesitate to reach out to people for support!
  • Attended a Dinner for 12 Buckeyes event, hosted by the Student Alumni Council
    • Met with alumni from the Asian/Pacific Islander (API) Alumni Society of OSU
    • Networked with fellow students and alumni
  • Accepted as Student Assistant/Research Assistant for The Ohio State University’s Opioid StoryMap research project! This project is through the partnership of the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, and a 2016 OSU President’s Prize winner.
    • With this research, students interview first responders (EMTs, police officers) in Columbus and surrounding areas and then people who have struggled with opioid use disorder in order to create narratives about use in our communities. We hope to reduce stigma against opioid use and addiction. We hope to gain a variety of perspectives and then make an online interactive story map that will help the public understand more about the epidemic and those who are impacted.
    • For autumn 2018, I did trainings to familiarize ourselves with the opioid epidemic in Central Ohio and how to effectively interview people using a trauma-informed model.
    • We awaited IRB approval this semester and we were still productive because we did cognitive interviews with our peers instead; we worked on developing good interview questions to later ask of the first responders and people in recovery.
  • Resumed volunteering with Equitas Health – Ohio HIV/STI Hotline
    • Reduced hours from 8 hours last semester to 4 hours for fall
    • Assembled risk reduction kits, with condoms (or dental dams) and business cards
    • Learned new skills of copying and printing sheets for our Free Condom Project
    • Learned how to use USPS database to print off labels of mailing addresses for our clients of the Free Condom Project
    • Created social media graphics that receive over 100, 300, and close to 500 individuals engaging with the posts
      • Examples: National Taco Day, International Day of the Elderly, National Mole Day, National Nut Day
      • I should create a portfolio of all of the posts I’ve made for the hotline
  • Volunteered with Equitas Health – Safe Point program
    • Conducted neighborhood clean up of Franklinton community, which involved finding and removing syringe parts on the streets. We looked around bushes, trash cans, and in parking lots.

      It turns out that my friends had also signed up to volunteer for the morning! The neighborhood was quiet and we saw plenty of cats roaming around. There was much litter as well, and we focused on grabbing syringes.

    •  Prepared risk reduction materials for clients who utilize Safe Point – I quickly assemble bags with syringes and sharps containers for people
    • I earned 30 hours of service here as part of a service learning course I took through the Women’s Studies department, Feminist Perspectives on Addiction
    • Although I was behind-the-scenes for the most part, besides one time where I shadowed an interviewer, I was able to learn more about substance use. This was very eye-opening for me.
  • Served first semester as Co-President of Global Health Initiative at The Ohio State University
    • Organized general body meetings, which entailed emailing potential speakers and coordinating with them to present to the organization.

      Marketing matters when attracting and retaining members for a student organization!

    • Oversaw our various committees: local volunteering, international volunteering, educational outreach, event planning, and marketing. Communicated with each group about concerns and progress.
    • Regularly maintained emails and responded to them promptly.
    • Maintained email listserv of over 6,000 people and monitored student subscriptions and removals.
    • Coordinated Simply Rolled fundraiser event.
    • Presented a couple of general body meetings: I lead one on Equitas Health and one about self-care, which was supported with research articles that talked about mindfulness, mental health, racial disparities, and affirmation-speaking.
    • Volunteered with Clean-Up Columbus on numerous occasions with fellow executive board members to raise money for GHI while simultaneously giving back to Columbus and beautifying it. We picked up recycling and trash along sidewalks on streets that were close to campus.
    •  Prepared executive board meeting agenda and kept minutes. Presented updates to the team.
    • I designed this informational flyer for GHI!

  • Presented poster on my Second-Year Transformational Program (STEP) Signature Project, which I completed in Summer 2018, at the STEP Expo on November 1st, 2018
    • Spent $10 on 36″ by 48″ poster
    • I frequently have an issue of putting too much text onto a poster. I just always have so much information and insights to share!

    • Poster link: Melinda Dang – STEP Poster PDF
  • Participated in Buckeye Pen Pals, from the Student Alumni Council
    • Matched with a mentor who graduated from OSU with her Master of Public Health in Epidemiology
    • Regularly communicate with mentor about career plans, academic goals, and other aspects of college life
  • Served on student panel at regional NAFSA international education conference on November 5th, 2018
    • Spoke about experiences with my education abroad program in May and challenges I faced, from financial to social to cultural, etc.
    • Was one of four student panelists; all of us were Young Scholars
    • Our panel was called “Access and Affordability: Lessons from Young Scholars

      This was my first time participating in a panel at a conference! It was a large room and we had no microphones. It was especially a struggle for me with my softer voice.

  • Attended luncheon with Mrs. Brenda Drake (wife of President Michael Drake of The Ohio State University) along with three other female students at OSU who are scholarship recipients themselves. The room was full of women professionals and we were able to talk over a meal.
  • On November 30th, 2018, I was informed of my offer of admission into the College of Public Health’s combined degree program for my BS/MPH in five years!
  • Planned and participated in MUNDO’s Puerto Rico 2018 Winter Break Experience: Se Levanta
    • Met with Action Team for an hour/hour and a half weekly beginning in August to plan experience.
    • Created informational flyer to advertise and promote experience, and also created flyer for the Pre-Travel Meeting for those accepted for the experience.
    • This is a very eye-catching flyer and includes the details of the trip as well as how it connects to MUNDO’s pillars of service, learning, and leadership.

    • Researched areas of interest related to cultural immersion, immigration experiences and history, and environmental sustainability.
    • Reached out to potential sites for volunteering in Puerto Rico, but it was difficult to find sites that accommodated our group size and were accessible to us.
    •  Emailed alumni of OSU who were in Puerto Rico and was able to secure six of them for a dinner with the students.
    • Throughout the experience, I kept constant communication on GroupMe to remind participants of the day-to-day activities and what to keep in mind while exploring.
  • Planned MUNDO’s Spring Break 2019 Experience in Washington, D.C. area
    • Met biweekly with action team for Autumn 2018 semester
    • Focus was on laying out itinerary and later on, recruitment of participants
    • I created a flyer to advertise the trip.
  • Achieved a 4.0 GPA and Dean’s List for the semester!
  • Wrote an analytical paper that will be provided as an example of exemplary writing for a course called Gender and Pop Culture (WGSST 2230)! I was surprised when my instructor reached out to me to ask if it was alright for them to show this paper for future classes.

Spring 2019

  •  Accepted as a participant for the Public Health Perspectives: Japan experience with the College of Public Health!
    • Our group has about 17 or 18 students and this was a competitive process. After applying, there were short interviews with the program director.
    • In spring, we have two orientation sessions to get ourselves ready for the program.
    • Also in spring, we have individual and group assignments to complete before the program. Then while abroad, we still have work to do!
  • Organized and executed MUNDO’s Spring Break 2019 Experience in Washington, D.C. area “Roots of Revolution, Social Change, & Activism in America
    • I have a separate blog post for this experience!

      OH-IO at the Capitol!

  • Served on Office of Diversity and Inclusion Research Panel in February to discuss how I got involved with research.
  •  Hired as one of two semester student assistants at the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity.
    •  Receptionist duties: greeting people
    •  Make copies, scans, and retrieve printed documents
    •  Stock Kirwan’s reports around office and in conference room
    •  Set up, check in, and tear down of Weekly Forums that occur in spring and fall
    •  Help with special projects, such as inputting data from business cards
    •  It has been great getting to know the researchers and staff at Kirwan and understand all that Kirwan has to offer, as well as the many partnerships we have in the community.
  • Awarded Alan Vander Molen study abroad scholarship, for students who are studying certain topics related to health and wellness, sustainability, and other areas.
  • Awarded an Honors & Scholars Enrichment Grant! Only 10-15% of proposals are accepted and I was awarded the full amount I asked for.
  • Awarded an ODI Education Abroad scholarship to help with study abroad.
  • Recognized as MUNDO’s Most Outstanding Member for spring 2019! I had the most points for attending MUNDO events.
    • We celebrate the very last general body meeting of MUNDO with a Mexican tradition called cascarones.

      We had a large group partake in this colorful tradition this year. Good luck and go Bucks!

  • Continued as Global Health Initiative’s Co-President for the semester.
    • Helped transition executive board members to become Co-Presidents.
    • Monitored executive board member applications and provided updates and acceptances on a rolling basis.
  • Awarded a Summer 2019 College of Public Health Global Health Travel Award for my study abroad program.
    • I will write a summary of my experience and its connection to global health.
  • Awarded Asian American Studies Best Undergraduate Research Paper or Critical Essay.
    • I submitted a paper that I wrote for my Gender in Pop Culture class, which I learned a lot from!
    • My paper analyzed a music video’s representation of women, and furthermore, Asian American women. The song I chose was Chris Brown’s “Fine China.” This assignment was fun and fulfilling, and it was also eye-opening.
  • Awarded summer funding from College Now Greater Cleveland; I asked this external donor for funds to help with meals and transportation during my program and I was excited to hear that they will support me!
  • Awarded fellowship for first year of graduate school, which will cover tuition, expenses, and provide me with a stipend!
  • Accepted into the Summer HIV/AIDS Research Program (SHARP) as a 2019 cohort member!
    • I am delighted to be a scholar in this extremely competitive summer internship program that involves research, mentorship, community outreach, workshops and seminars, and more! This is a great step in my public health career and will help me narrow down what I want to do in my future. Furthermore, I will get to live and work in a different environment and meet dozens of individuals. I look forward to these relationships and I am super excited about this opportunity. Look out for several blog posts about SHARP.
  • Earned Dean’s List honor for spring 2019 semester!
  • Shared my story on mental health and breaking the stigma for podcast called Hidden in Plain Sight, co-founded by two students at OSU; more information on the podcast is here: https://neurosciencemajor.osu.edu/hidden-in-plain-site.
  • Shared my story about mental health stigma as an APIDA with an editor from The Lantern, a student-run newspaper! I was excited to be a part of the campus conversation on mental health within the APIDA community and my unique experiences with my identities. I hope to continue advocating for mental health resources for everyone and that everyone can access these resources; not only that, but these resources and providers need to be culturally sensitive and intersectional in their approach, so that they look at the whole person and see what is all going on in their lives. There’s so much to mental health I want to talk about and explore further myself, in my personal life as well as my professional career.

Once again, the 2018-2019 school year has had a myriad of ups and downs but I learned about myself in the process. I cannot believe the year is over, but I am glad because I have been incredibly tired. I did not imagine myself getting involved and taking part in these amazing opportunities at Ohio State and outside of this campus, this state, or even this country.

Tomorrow, if things go as planned, I will head to Tokyo, Japan to start my adventures in another country! Then next month, I begin more adventures in a new city, all the way across America, in San Francisco. I’m so thankful for these opportunities.

Roots of Revolution, Change, & Activism in America (Spring Break 2019)

On the road again!

Once again, I planned and participated in one of MUNDO’s alternative break experiences! This was yet another ‘education vacation’ and an opportunity for me to see a part of America for the first time in my life. It allowed me to deepen my knowledge about this nation’s history. This spring break 2019, we visited Colonial Williamsburg, VA, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Maryland to explore the theme of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Furthermore, we aimed to explore “Who tells your story?” because there are histories that are commonly known about whereas there are others that are unknown or hidden. Some individuals’ or groups’ histories and stories do not get told fully or even at all. For this spring break, we had a host of different experiences that enhanced our knowledge and challenged us to critically think and inquire. A few of them were visits to the Jamestown Settlement, National Holocaust Museum, and Great Blacks in Wax Museum, and a dinner with Pulitzer-Prize winning author, Wesley Lowery.

Fun Fact: MUNDO first went to D.C. in the spring of 2001. Ever since, the organization has gone back regularly (but not every school year). Each time is a different experience!

I used Canva to create an informational flyer.

The spring break action team held biweekly planning meetings in autumn semester and weekly meetings for spring semester. To be brief about our experiences coordinating the trip, we encountered many roadblocks and hurdles that helped our team strengthen and bond over obstacles. We were able to execute this experience successfully, with 20 participants (16 students and 4 OSU staff members/mentors). MUNDO partnered with the Morrill Scholars Program Learning Community so we had new faces and new perspectives. Our trip was predominantly underclassmen (first- and second-years!)

Here’s the day-to-day run-down:

Monday March 4th
The action team held a 30 minute Pre-Travel Meeting for the participants to attend, unless they had other circumstances that prevented them from coming. We added people to the GroupMe and shared a Google Drive folder with the itinerary, room assignments, and restaurants in D.C. and Williamsburg. In our presentation, we made sure to discuss what people should pack (such as packing layers of clothing to wear), and for specific days, people should wear nicer clothing – ‘snappy casual.’

Friday March 8th
I packed one large suitcase and stuffed my backpack full of items. I was most excited for Washington, D.C. and warmer weather.

Saturday March 9th
I slept about six hours before taking a Lyft to campus. MUNDO has three pick-up locations on campus: Archer House, Drake Performance Center, and the Ohio Union. We have an OSU charter bus throughout spring break, and I stocked four of its cubbies with snacks bought from Kroger. We had quite a stash of food for our participants, including Krispy Kreme donuts, apple sauce, Poptarts, apples, mini oranges, juice boxes, granola bars, chips, and fruit snacks. We also distributed MUNDO drawstring bags to each participant; each bag contained the itinerary and resource guide (with maps and lists of places to eat), a brown paper bag to store food, and Wesley Lowery’s book, They Can’t Kill Us All! Participants were encouraged to read the book on the bus ride since there were hours to spend.

Around 12:30 PM, we were in Lexington, VA and had an hour long rest to eat lunch. A large portion of us went to this restaurant called Cook Out, which has burgers, fries, and shakes, among other items. On the bus ride, I did online homework and was happy to be finished. I also spent time looking at classes for Autumn 2019 semester.

We reached Williamsburg, VA around 4 PM and checked in. We had free time until 6:00 PM when we met up for a group dinner. Dinner consisted of pizza and salad and we talked some more about the itinerary. That evening, I tried some ice cream from Bubba’s Ice Cream Shack just minutes away on foot from our hotel. The ice cream there was a tad expensive, but thankfully we used a buy-one-get-one-free coupon which made it more worthwhile. I had a great sleep at the hotel we were in; the bed was very comfortable.

Sunday March 10th
After an early breakfast at the hotel, we departed for a three-hour guided tour of Colonial Williamsburg. Our guide was named Mr. Drewry. I liked that he was honest and encouraged us to ask questions and challenge him. He was born and raised in the area and said he would spend the rest of his life here. This site is incredibly large that no single person can get through all of it in a day!
Here is the website for this living museum: https://www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/

We were ready for a day of exploration and education!


The group made our way to a silversmith, a jail, some homes, a carpenter’s area, and the Capitol Building. It was an information-packed time. My favorite part was visiting the silversmith. For some reason, I remembered the most from that session. It was interesting to see that people’s coins in the 18th century were literally cut in half to make a half-dollar. Coins could also be cut into fourths and eighths. Silver was also converted into jewelry and household items (spoons, coffee pots, bowls, etc.). A peer asked if people could get sick from using silver spoons for eating and the presenter replied that silver has antimicrobial properties.

I did find that the jails were very unhygienic at that time in history; this was not surprising to me though. Jail cells had poor ventilaton and usually had one window. Inmates would use a blanket to cover the window in the winter to block snow (and sunlight). They would relieve themselves in a corner, but the stench would be strong in the summers and winters.

This was where “the colony’s representatives struggled with the British governor over the meaning of American liberty.”

This tour provided me with greater insights into African Virginians in the early 1700s. Africans made up 52% of the population in Williamsburg. We heard stories of enslaved peoples and their experiences in this area. A salient point I remember is that when an enslaved person was new to the quarters of an estate, the other enslaved people already there would welcome the person in. They shared clothing and tools in crowded conditions. Their meals were simple and made out of one pot. Mr. Drewry, our tour guide, talked about some of his heroes and heroines from the colonial era. Some stories he told were saddening, but there were some that included triumphs and perseverance.


We took a break for lunch and explored the area on our own afterwards. I took the chance to quickly stop by the College of William and Mary to see what its campus looked like. A small group and I looked at a statue and one building. Since we were hungry for lunch, we left to get food. As we walked to a tavern, we saw a cow on a leash, bulls in a field, and plenty of people walking their dogs in Williamsburg. This was a pet-friendly environment. We found out that Chowning’s Tavern was closed, so we went to Trellis Bar & Grill. After lunch, we browsed in shops. My friend and I strolled through bookstores, a candy shop, and an outdoor festival. I appreciated this free time to explore; I purchased dessert from a festival vendor to support local and small businesses.

This public research university is the second oldest institution for higher education in America. The oldest is Harvard.


I ended the afternoon in Colonial Williamsburg with meandering through the Art Museums. I enjoyed viewing the installations at the Public Hospital for Persons of Insane and Disordered Minds, the first of its kind in British North America. It housed 24 patients and a live-in attendant in a remote area of Williamsburg. At the time, there was a belief that medical intervention in a hospital setting would cure insanity. Since its opening in 1773, mental illness treatment, and our knowledge of it, has transformed during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Seeing this exhibit appealed to me because I study public health and have interests in medical anthropology and history. Approaches to mental illness had a new outlook beginning in the mid-19th century, when caretakers used more optimism and kindness, which was referred to as moral management. Anyone could fall ill to mental illness. The hospital changed rooms to improve patient comfort (and health outcomes). Each patient still had their own room (called apartments) with wooden bed and furniture. The rooms looked more domestic and suitable for humans. The windows and walls were also different in order to give the sense of a welcoming environment. It was unsettling to see how patients were held in previous centuries, but comforting that eventually, medical practices and views changed.

In the early years, hospital cells felt like prison cells. Patients spent most of their times inside and were provided with a straw-filled bed, chamber pot, and blanket. There were no structured activities.


In another area of the museum, I gazed upon examples of American and British antiques and decorative art dating back to the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. There were also colonial and contemporary folk art pieces in the galleries.
In the late afternoon, we returned to the hotel for rest. Just a handful of us ate dinner before the evening activity.

In the evening, we embarked on the African American Music Experience, back at the same location, but inside one of its buildings. I did not know what to expect, but this was certainly a nontraditional discovery opportunity! (The NDO part of MUNDO stands for Nontraditional Discovery Opportunity). We stood the entire day and it was very interactive. In the hour or hour and a half we had, we began with singing Funga Alafia, which is a cheerful rhythm about welcoming and blessing. “Greetings I bring to you, ashe, ashe.” That was fun. Then we followed and sang along to other words in different African dialects. Another song I remember was in English and it was called “One Day.” Enslaved folks sung while they worked to keep their morale up and to preserve and pass along cultural traditions. Song and music can help people communicate and express their myriad of feelings, from despair and mourning to hope and encouragement. Additionally, singing along with others can uplift one’s own spirit and help form closer relationships over a shared struggle. We did several different dances and songs. Each of us also had to do our own unique dance which could not be similar to anyone else’s. It was also amazing to see MUNDO participants step up and help make rhythms using instruments like African drums. By the end of the night, we had some lighthearted fun while also learning about the realities of enslavement and how African people survived centuries of slavery and its aftermath and thrived.

The staff had wonderful voices and helped us sing, dance, and play instruments along with them.

Monday March 11th
We ate breakfast and stored our bags in the charter bus. We had a guided tour of the Jamestown Settlement, America’s first permanent English colony. It is a living history museum with indoor and outdoor displays, as well as replicas of ships and recreations of the original James fort from 1607 and a Powhatan Indian village. Our guide, a retiree and a veteran of two wars named Ali, started us inside the museum to walk us through history of colonization and settlement. We actually know and use Algonquian language without realizing it: the words skunk, raccoon, Potomac, and tomahawk are Algonquian. In addition, many words in everyday English come from Native American languages.

The group witnessed a musketeer firing a rifle. Some of us also tried on musketeer armor and helmets!

To briefly explain Jamestown and its history, from what I took in from our guide, Europeans came over to this land we now call America for economic, religious, and political reasons. Some came to settle to escape persecution, but there were some with insidious intentions who wanted to exploit the rich resources of the land and other negative actions. Some Europeans were colonizers. Building this settlement and building this nation required human, natural, and capital resources. In 1618, the first documented Africans arrived in Virginia for indentured servitude. By the middle of the century, slavery was incorporated. These facts and findings about Jamestown was more eye-opening for me because it added to my knowledge of colonialism, specifically in the context of Virginia.

I enjoyed learning about Powhatan life. Women did farming, harvesting, cooking, and childrearing. Men hunted and fished. Farming accounted for at least half of people’s food supply, but people, including many elementary school visitors, think that hunting is the main source of food for Indians. Something else I learned was Pocahontas’s story and role in saving America. Pocahontas is a nickname given to her by her father because she was his “playful child.” She was an important figure who helped bring peace between the Powhatans and English while she was alive. It is intriguing that she is a popular Native American figure and there are many books, poems, and films about her, including the Disney film. Stories about her can differ and we do not know the entirety of her short life, but I learned much more about her from my visit to Jamestown (and later on, D.C.’s National Museum of the American Indian).

Overall, I really liked the Jamestown tour and how much history and information we were provided. It did not feel like we were being lectured at. Our guide emphasized a few points: 1) each culture is great and valid; no culture is better than the other. 2) We should thank our teachers/educators sincerely because without teachers, society would not function. Teaching is an often underappreciated profession, but teaching helps pass on knowledge to younger generations.

An actor shared with us facts about Powhatan lifestyles in the 17th century.
“The re-created Powhatan Indian village is based on archaeological findings at a site once inhabited by Paspahegh Indians, the Powhatan tribal group closest to Jamestown, and descriptions recorded by English colonists.”
From historyisfun.org

For more information on Jamestown, this summary should suffice:
https://www.historyisfun.org/jamestown-settlement/history-jamestown/

We went on to our next city, Washington, D.C.! Some students take a class trip to D.C. during middle school or high school; this is a phenomenon for Ohio students for some reason. I was supposed to go in eighth grade but it did not end up happening. Perhaps it was because of funding issues, as I attended a public school in a low-income inner-city. I always wondered when I would get to see the nation’s capital, and finally as a 21-year-old, I was able to!

After arriving and checking in, we had the rest of the time to explore. My friends and I walked to the Washington Monument, where we ran into public health Buckeyes, and then we headed to Chinatown. The D.C. Chinatown area is smaller than the ones in NYC and L.A. of course. It also is different in terms of atmosphere and feel compared to my hometown Cleveland’s AsiaTown. For this spot in D.C., many establishments had signs in English letters and Chinese characters. I enjoyed looking at the architecture of buildings and the traditional entrance gate. A group and I had dinner here in a family-owned restaurant called New Big Wong. We got bubble tea afterwards at a Vietnamese-owned cafe that sells banh mi sandwiches and Taiwan-invented bubble tea. It was a good evening.

“Full stomachs and happy hearts” is how I like to describe our dinner.


In the future, I want to delve into the history of this Chinatown because from what I have briefly researched online and noticed in person from walking on the streets, there is some gentrification going on. Apparently, many people of Chinese descent have been driven out of this historic area. Gentrification is not a new occurrence for communities of color, and as someone who is passionate about sociology and social justice, I want to examine this issue and its effects.
For more information on Chinatown:
https://www.tripsavvy.com/chinatown-washington-dc-neighborhood-guide-1039373

Tuesday March 12th
The D.C. hotel does not provide breakfast, so we are responsible for finding food ourselves. I tried to eat leftovers of my beef chow fun, a Cantonese Chinese dish, but I wish I had eaten more filling and nutritious food as well. In the morning, our group walked together to the Smithsonian Castle, home to the Smithsonian Visitor Center. This is a good stop to get oriented to the Smithsonian museum complex. It is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex. I learned about the history of the museum and how an Englishman named James Smithson founded the Institute to promote and diffuse knowledge and learning around in America.

Smithsonian Castle. Source: smithsonianmag.com

A few friends and I had a small window of time to wander the halls of the Freer Art Gallery. We only had 20-25 minutes to look around, and part of the time, we spent in the gift shop. I did not get to go back to this art gallery later in the week for its exhibits and gift shop. However, I saw Asian art pieces when I was there. In particular, I saw Buddhist and Hindu ancient art and shrines. It would be nice to visit D.C. again to get to the museums and art galleries I did not get to the first time I was in the city.

Information on the Institute: https://www.si.edu/Museums/smithsonian-institution-building

Our MUNDO group visited the National Holocaust Museum. This was self-guided, so we went at our own pace. I have been to a holocaust museum in Cleveland and Los Angeles, and now this one in D.C., where I learned even more about the genocide. I had a card with the name and photo of a young girl; as I progressed through the museum, I learned what happened to her and her family. She did not make it out of the Holocaust alive, and perished in a camp.

I took photos of many of the walls that had text descriptions on them. A few facts I want to share are:

– By 1939, there were less havens available for Jewish refugees. Latin American countries took in around 39,600 Jewish people, and 15,000 people found safety in Shanghai. In October 1941, emigrating out of Nazi Germany was forbidden. It was upsetting that America did not let in as many refugees as they could have, in part because of anti-immigration sentiment.
– Some Jewish children who were sick and hospitalized were killed by starvation, lethal injections, or overdoses of medicine. About 30 institutions carried this heinous practices out, intentionally harming instead of helping. These “special children’s wards” were also places where any youth with disabilities, mental or physical, were killed. German physicians carried out Operation T4 to eradicate the Jewish people and preserve genetic impurity. Learning of this was atrocious to me; it was especially horrific hearing how children were treated.

Here are hundreds of photos of people in a Jewish community in Eishishok, in what is now Lithuania. These are from 1890 to 1941.

In the museum there is also an exhibit about the systemic killings occurring in Syria since 2011. This is the greatest humanitarian crisis since World War II. Half of Syria’s population, 11 million, have fled. While I have heard about this crisis in the news, I have not done much thorough investigation of my own. It feels removed from me for some reason, and I know that I should do something like educate myself and/or donate. I should share this information so that we do not turn a blind eye to this issue of human rights as well.

Here is the website for the museum: https://www.ushmm.org/

After the National Holocaust Museum, I went straight to another museum, which also dealt with heavy history: The National Museum of African American History. I spent a few hours here, and was not able to read every detail. I learned a lot here as well. The museum began in the basement, where we were introduced to Africa in the 1400s. Slavery was not yet based on perceptions of race and it was a temporary status. People traded gold, salt, and spices. Later on, the concept of whiteness developed, along with other races to categorize people and ascribe characteristics to them. Race was also a factor in determining freedom, like in the case of John Punch. He and two European servants tried to run away but were caught and trialed. The white indentured servants had added-on time for their service, but Punch was sentenced to a life of enslavement. This was unbelievable.

This exterior design resembles a golden basket to me.

In addition to the exhibits on slavery, I found this learning center fascinating. There were interactive stations and I engaged with one of them, where I learned how people find artifacts in the deep Atlantic Ocean to help us uncover some more of the story of the slave trade. On other museum floors, I saw African American music and art, and how those influenced our world to this day. African Americans have made so many contributions to society and are an integral part of our history. This was not the first African American history museum I have been to; the first one was in Detroit, but this one was the largest! You can spend a whole day here if you want to devote intense interest to the museum.

I liked a quote on the wall: “The great force of history comes from the fact that we carry it with us, are unconsciously controlled by it… History is literally present in all that we do.” – James Baldwin
This quote will stick with me, since I hold history to be so important and necessary in understanding the world around me. From the museum’s food court, I enjoyed delicious, soul-soothing mac and cheese and corn bread. I recommend these two items! After that, I returned to the hotel for a quick rest.

MUNDO attended a Shear Madness performance at the Kennedy Center. I was in charge of booking seats for this murder comedy show. We had to keep contacting the center to update them on how many seats to reserve. I liked the show as it was interactive and funny, and I liked how they used retro colors and styles. It was similar to the movie Clue. During the intermission, we were able to talk to the performers to try to figure out who committed the crime. The performance was a nice way to end the night.

Wednesday March 13th
We completed service in the morning at A Wider Circle, in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Our group spent about three hours with this organization, and I really enjoyed volunteering here to help with organizing the different sections. Some people worked on making furniture and glass look polished and like new. Other people sorted out donations and even unloaded furniture from a truck. Those in the workforce development room worked on tidying up the areas and sorting belts, clothing, and shoes in preparation for a major event. Later, some of us examined puzzle boxes from the children’s section and counted the number of puzzle pieces in each box to make sure nothing was missing. This was all a fun experience for me. I learned about this great community-based organization that wants to continue growing and offering all that it can to support anyone in need.
They help people make houses or apartments into homes, help secure jobs and look good for the workforce, and help families make the most of what they have.

Expand your mind and expand your efforts at http://awidercircle.org/ 

The next group activity was our tour of the Capitol! 

Our tour guide was engaging and charismatic. She was open to all of our questions. She, like many people in D.C. in her words, is not from the area.

MUNDO had to do an OH-IO in front of the Capitol building!

While the architecture of the Capitol was gorgeous and impeccable, there was one room with many paintings and sculptures that made us think deeper into the art. No enslaved peoples were in any of the art in the room. There were a few Native Americans and these depictions were often racist as they painted these indigenous Americans as non-human/sub-human. There was a large painting of Pocahontas being baptized and becoming “white” or “acceptable.” Her true story rarely gets told, and I wonder why this is the case. Congress has the ability to change out these paintings and commission new ones that can tell the story of America better, and bring justice to the lives of Native Americans and African/African Americans as well as other people of color who built this stolen nation.

Our tour ended at 4:30 PM and we were free until 6:15 PM, when we had to be back at the hotel. I rushed to the U.S. Botanic Garden, an attraction on my bucket list. When I finally made my way into the building, I had about 10 minutes to zoom through its galleries and set my eyes on the lush vegetation and landscapes. A peer took photos of me before we were asked to leave. I’d love to return in the summer when everything is in bloom.

In the evening, MUNDO had a group dinner with Ohio State alumni at Harriet’s, a family-style restaurant inside of our hotel.

Thursday March 14th
This was a free day for MUNDO participants. I spent time with friends eating breakfast at a café called Abe’s Café (there are two locations). We stayed there for a while to work on homework and applications. I finished a study abroad scholarship application and had a friend look it over. We then went to Smithsonian museums of our choice! First up was the Library of Congress. Three of us went to get our library cards! The rooms of the library were marvelous. If I lived in D.C., I would check out some books and study in that library. What a great resource for people who want to learn and research any topic of choice.

My friend Kayla snapped this shot of me on this sunny day of exploration.

Then one friend and I explored the National Museum of the American Indian. Prior to this, I had never been to a museum dedicated towards Native American history and heritage. I was very thankful that this museum existed to educate people and celebrate the many diverse cultures and traditions of different Native groups.

Did you know? About 60% of the world’s diet today is derived from Native American foods, such as potatoes, chilies, tomatoes, and chocolate! Native Americans also grew a variety of food together, which is called biodiversity and lead to healthier crops. European colonists, on the other hand, used monocultures, which is not the most beneficial for agriculture.

This museum offers information and artifacts about American Indians in the Western Hemisphere of the world.
https://americanindian.si.edu/about

My friend and I witnessed a Native American man perform a song he wrote; he is a scholar and artist. This performance was a nontraditional discovery opportunity, and he opened the floor to questions from the audience: three from children and three from adults. We explored the museum and learned of different communities and their ways of life. I learned how different groups perceived their universes. We looked at the:
Pueblo of Santa Clara (New Mexico)
Anishinaabe (Canada)
Lakota (South Dakota)
Quechua (Peru)
Hupa (California)
Q’eq’chi’ Maya (Guatemala)
Mapuche (Chile)
Yup’ik (Alaska)

It is our duty to pass these teachings on to succeeding generations 
For that is the way to keep our traditions alive

Emil Her Many Horses, NMAI, 2003

These exhibits, including the introductory video NMAI suggests you watch on the top floor, was eye-opening for me and helped me gain a greater appreciation for Native Americans and their legacies. I would not have gotten all of this information and insight elsewhere. I strongly believe that all school curricula should have comprehensive sections on Native Americans and their experiences. I remember learning about them in second grade and fifth grade. As an adult, I have a more nuanced understanding of the complex histories. I still want to learn more and one way I can do this is to find books and works from indigenous scholars themselves.

I had an Indian taco from the food court. It had buffalo chili, which tasted like normal chili to me. I paired the meal with a refreshing agua fresca.

Afterwards, I checked out the NMAI gift shop and debated on what to get from there. Leaving empty-handed except for educational pamphlets, we embarked for the National Portrait Gallery. According to the gallery curators, it is a place for our nation’s stories to be told. The arts are a window to our history. The first major sculpture my friends and I saw was the dying Tecumseh, a key player in the Indian resistance to America’s expansion into the Midwest. We saw portraits and sculptures of important figures who played a role in shaping America. I was more interested in figures who are alive today, although everyone is important. I especially liked the most up-to-date exhibit. In particular, Michelle Obama’s and Barack Obama’s portraits were absolutely outstanding. This art gallery had pieces related to responses to the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement, and other events. It is a very interesting gallery aimed to provoke emotion and thought.

The artist displayed on the TV screens what he associated with each state.

The last part of the day was spent having dinner and conversation with Mr. Wesley Lowery, a journalist at The Washington Post. We ate at Ollie’s Trolley, around the block from the hotel. It was a fantastic opportunity to hear from him and his upbringing in Ohio and his experiences as a journalist fighting for justice. According to his biography,  he was a lead on the Post’s “Fatal Force” project that won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2016 as well as the author of They Can’t Kill Us All: Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America’s Racial Justice Movement. In 2017, he became a CNN political contributor.

Mr. Lowery went to Ohio University with a MUNDO staff mentor, who helped us connect with Lowery and coordinate this meeting. For about an hour and a half, we had his presence. He explained to us how he had always known he would pursue journalism. It was an enlightening conversation. We asked him questions during dinner as well as afterward. I still struggle with coming up with questions to ask guests. It is something I need to work on. I also read a little bit of his book, but not all of it. It is on my to-do list.

For the rest of the night, a few peers and I looked around in the H&M store down the street from us. We tried on clothes and had fun. That was it for the night. I knew I should turn in at a reasonable time to get sufficient sleep, and for the most part, I have slept fine in Hotel Harrington.

Ollie’s burgers are good. The fries are seasoned with 27 spices, they boast! Sadly I could not try one of their shakes; the machine broke right before it got to me.

Friday March 15th
We had a free morning to do our final exploration of D.C.. I got to visit Palmer Alley, which had beautiful pink lanterns to celebrate cherry blossom season. This is a great spot for photographs! Also, this spot is pretty close to Chinatown. I wanted to see more art installations and murals around, but I did not want to go alone to these spots, and there was a limited amount of time.

In the summer, the lanterns get switched out for beach balls.

At 2:15 PM, we met up for an afternoon walking tour. MUNDO walked all the way to the Tidal Basin, and around it, we met with our guide. We started at the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and then made our way to the Korean War Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, and Vietnam War Memorial. This was an interesting tour with tons of tidbits of facts. Many people were touring the area and looking at the memorials.

 

On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, we took a nice photo. 10 students and one MUNDO advisor are in the photo!

We had the evening free to ourselves after the tour. I met up with a friend from the summer research program I did in summer 2018! I am fortunate that she lives and goes to school in the DC area, and her spring break had just started as mine was coming to a close. We went to Ricebar for dinner, where we caught up over our meal, and then walked to The Wharf at the suggestion of my friends. At the Wharf, there’s a substantial amount of seafood sold, which is not surprising. Then there are restaurants and bars all around. I want to return here as well. If we had walked all the way down its boardwalk, we would have seen the giant swings that my friends got to go on. My friend and I went to get red velvet cupcakes and we ended the night. It is hard to find cheap desserts in DC. The cupcakes were $3 or so, which is not too bad because they were quite tasty and rich.

(For the week in DC, I gave myself an allowance of $200 to spend on food and souvenirs. A month later at the time of this posting, I still have not checked exactly how much I spent. I know I saved a significant amount of money by using an app where certain dishes from restaurants were $1 and I had credit on the app so I was getting free meals once a day! The app is called Ritual.)

Saturday March 16th
We had an early breakfast before checking out and storing our bags on the bus. At 8:00 AM, we departed for Baltimore, Maryland for a tour of the Great Blacks in Wax Museum. I believe this was my first time going to a wax museum. (There were a lot of ‘firsts’ for me on this trip). This museum was certainly unique and unforgettable, as it presented Black individuals in life-size dimensions, and they were quite realistic. There was so much to this museum. We began with the slave trade and I learned more pieces to the story. My knowledge of the world is constantly expanding. It was such an experience to see the figures accompanied with text to explain the context.

I saw so many important figures, some of whom I learned about in elementary school during African American History Month. My school’s library teacher taught me the most about civil rights and social justice. She taught me lessons that I take with me to this very day. Educators like her have inspired me in ways that I cannot express verbally. All over the museum were African Americans as pioneers in fields where nobody looked like them, as warriors and fighters in the midst of tumultuous times, as dissenters and activists to get their rights. There were many people I was unaware about, and this filled I recommend this museum too. My favorite part was seeing the wax figure of Barack Obama and the poems that people wrote about him.

Here is more about the museum: http://www.greatblacksinwax.org/index.html 

We had lunch in the Baltimore Inner Harbor before continuing on the long journey back to Columbus, Ohio.
The inner harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and landmark for the city of Baltimore. My small group of friends ate at Shake Shack. We were originally going to eat at Cheesecake Factory but our party of seven would have had to wait 45 minutes before sitting down. After eating, we perused Barnes & Noble. I also want to return to this harbor to try out the dragon boats available for tourists! I’ve rowed a boat before in Finland, but I want to try a boat here in America. We had a short time in the Harbor. I wanted to finish this blog on the bus ride, but slept for several hours. Surprisingly, by 7 PM, MUNDO reached The Ohio State University’s campus! I was happy we had gotten back before it was dark outside. Even more so, I was relieved that this experience was successful.

Source: Baltimore.org

REFLECTION
This experience was the most stressful to plan to this date. The frustrating aspects of planning were the government shutdown making us wonder about how we would adjust our agenda, participant recruitment, participants canceling, and museum and tour bookings. Since our group’s number of participants changed constantly, it was difficult to give museums and service sites an exact count. Being an action team member has sharpened my skills in patience, public speaking, problem solving, communicating, planning, budgeting, and email etiquette. I also helped facilitate Monday MUNDO meetings that connect and contribute to the themes of our experience. Furthermore, I was the administrator for the group’s GroupMe, where we communicate with each other. I put in reminders for where the group had to be and what they had to do for each activity. Additionally, I am pleased that we had a smaller-sized group because it was easier for us to fit into spaces and navigate museums. We got to know each other better as well. We discussed heavy and controversial topics and found common ground. My peers are very admirable and interesting.

I look forward to planning and participating in more MUNDO experiences. For the 2019-2020 school year, MUNDO is going to New York City for fall break, Los Angeles for winter break, and Charleston, South Carolina; Atlanta, Georgia; and Savannah, Georgia for spring break. I would like to be a part of the Action Team for both winter and spring breaks to continue to create meaningful experiences and further explore the country.

Tune in next year when I serve, learn, and lead even more with my beloved student organization, MUNDO!