I learned about MUNDO before coming on campus my freshman year. While perusing the student organizations directory, I stumbled upon this organization committed to Service, Learning, and Leadership. I attended a few meetings and my interest for diversity and cross-cultural learning only grew from being a member of MUNDO. In the spring of freshman year, I applied and was selected as an executive board member.

As a first-time executive board member, this caused me to be apprehensive when the 2017-2018 school year rolled around. Being on e-board is not as easy as it sounds. Prior to the academic year, during the summer, extensive planning occurred, such as creating posters for the year’s events. Our program coordinator Julius sent us a list of tasks to be completed, with deadlines attached to them. It was up to the e-board to divvy up the responsibilities. We also finalized what our Mondays with MUNDO meetings would entail, from making the budget to managing the resources like requesting rooms to creating programs that people would be drawn to and lead them to join our organization. This is what my first year as an executive board member for MUNDO looked like. (Our e-board is called ODNUM for some reason, which is just our name backwards.)

Twitter: @MUNDOOSU1
Facebook: MUNDO at The Ohio State University
We are always accepting members, no dues ever

The Ohio State University – Involvement Fair – August 20th, 2017 

I was stationed at the MUNDO table from 6 to 7 pm. I spoke to several people, even OSU employees who wanted to learn more about the organization. Employees are allowed to attend meetings, but cannot accompany us on any MUNDO trips. Some students rushed to the booth and eagerly signed their names and emails on our list to receive our updates. I was glad that there were hundreds of people who seemed interested in the organization, but I realize that after a few meetings, attendance does decline as students decide if they want to stay in MUNDO or not. It is about finding the right fit and experimenting with student orgs. Our table and poster were decorated beautifully. We had fortune cookies to distribute and we had three different messages. One that I recall was “Community service and global travel are in your future”, and all messages contained a link to MUNDO’s website! Furthermore, we had tiny button pins with different country flags on them! We passed out papers about our London & Rome trip as well as our calendar of events for the fall. At the end of the day, the e-board members emailed students reminding them of the event the next day.

Welcome Week Event – August 21st, 2017

This event was at Curl Viewpoint from 6:30 to 8:00 pm, and our first meeting of the year! We had music and an ice cream sundae bar catered by the university. We also had plenty of drinks like ice water, orange juice, apple juice, and lemonade. We had a few people come half an hour early, which I appreciated. On the tables were MUNDO calendars detailing our meetings/events, and fortune cookies. In total we had about 30 to 40 attendants. The executive board members introduced themselves to the crowd. We scattered among the tables so we each took a table to sit at and mingle with the students. After an overview of the organization, we played Cultural Pursuit. Each table was a team (of up to 8 people) and filled out a BINGO sheet together. The sheet had questions to answer and the team(s) with the most correct answers would earn prizes. Two teams tied for the most number of accurate answers. We had 25 questions and those teams had 24 points, which was impressive! They received MUNDO drawstring bags.

Community Commitment 2017 – August 26th, 2017
MUNDO had a large group volunteer with OSU’s annual Community Commitment event! This is how OSU pays it forward to the surrounding areas. MUNDO was transported to a community garden.

Let’s Get Things Started! – August 28th, 2017
For this meeting, held in the Great Hall Meeting Room #1 in the Union, we brought in two representatives from Student Leadership Advocates to facilitate a session: Elysse and Ashley! They used Tinker Toys for our activity, and the students were divided into four groups. One facilitator, Ashley, created a structure outside of the room, and she instructed the room to recreate this piece exactly. The game was called Sabotage, and apparently some people in each group were supposed to sabotage the team. If we suspected someone of being that person, we would have to call them out and then the rest of the group would agree to out that individual. Only one person per group could get up and go look outside at a time, and there was no talking permitted at all! It was a difficult task, and I have poor spatial awareness. The fastest team finished in about 8 minutes, while it took my team the longest time of 12 minutes, close to 13. This activity allowed us to learn about how we need to trust in one another. In the end, it was revealed that nobody was given the role of Sabotage!

A Meal and Some MUNDO – The Columbus Greek Festival – September 4th, 2017
At noon, about 23 MUNDO members met at the Brutus statue in the Ohio Union to take the COTA together to the annual Greek Festival! MUNDO covered the $5 admission fee for each of us. Once we were there, we were free to explore the grounds on our own. We first went inside the Cathedral to listen to a talk and spoken tour of the room. I spent time with people I already knew, so in the future, I should hang out with people I do not know. I tried Greek coffee (I still prefer my Starbucks), as well as Greek foods such as spanakopita, tiropita, and a platter of desserts.
I watched dance performances from younger children and from teenagers. I also listened to women singing.
This experience allowed me to learn more about Greek culture, from the dancing to the food and religion.

ODNUM Meeting #1 – September 5th, 2017

The executive board members and Julius and Ryan met to discuss updates and trip planning. We talked about trip budgets and agendas.

General Body Meeting – United We Stand – September 11th, 2017
A representative from CRIS (Columbus Refugee & Immigration Services) spoke to us about what CRIS does!
We collected a few boxes worth of household item donations for refugees in Central Ohio. We had over 30 people come to this event and learned about how refugees are being settled in the area and what services are available to them to aid them in adjusting to America. Please see www.crisohio.org/ for more! Thank you to Tyler Reeve, Community Engagement Coordinator, for presenting for us!

Education Abroad Expo – September 14th, 2017
MUNDO was at the College of Education and Human Ecology table to share with students about our Multicultural Histories and Legacies of London and Rome experience 2018. This counts as a STEP project and as part of the Leadership Minor at OSU! There were also 100 other education abroad options at the expo.

What Do You Stand For? / Guess the Straight RA – September 19th, 2017
A controversial event with Baker Hall West, this meeting allowed us to celebrate OSU Ally Week by exploring and discussing ways to challenge the stereotypes or biases that affect the LGBTQ communities on campus, and beyond.
The Hall Director for Baker West coordinated the event along with MUNDO.

STAR HOUSE Service Night – September 25, 2017

This service night benefitted the organization Star House, a crucial resource for youth experiencing homelessness in Columbus. It was my first time going to this place. We took Lyfts and Ubers to get there, which wasn’t too far from campus. We spent about two hours organizing donated clothing in the warehouse section of Star House. We refolded clothes and made sure that the clothes were in the appropriate boxes, labeled and separated by size and gender. A nice volunteer explained to us more about Star House and even showed us around the facility. There was a new kitchen, a living room area with a TV, and a computer room.

Please visit www.starhousecolumbus.org to read more about what they do and see how you can help! They accept donations and you can also volunteer, work, or intern with them.

Strange Foods – October 2, 2017
I enjoyed this workshop! It is MUNDO’s spin-off of the show Bizarre Foods. So did the other members! We had a good attendance this day, about 20 people. Julius had a Powerpoint and a table filled with unfamiliar snacks. We began with biscuits – not like the fluffy, buttered ones from Kentucky Fried Chicken – but British biscuits that resembled cookies. They were slightly sweet and like thin discs. American biscuits and British biscuits contrast greatly. Julius asked “Is a biscuit a biscuit?” and “Is a cookie a cookie?” to get the group thinking about how these definitions vary depending on the culture. In waves, we passed out items including Yucca chips, plantain chips, seaweed (one was prawn flavored and the other was wasabi flavored), pork rind chips, green tea Kit Kat, and ginger Kit Kats. We discussed how we felt about each foods’ texture and taste. We ended with kimchi, with both vegan and meat versions passed around. Ways to comment on a food are “This is interesting… I like the color of it… What do you like about this food?… How often is this eaten?…”
The lesson learned here was to try foods, even a tiny bite of them! I ended up semi-liking or tolerating the Kit Kats, but I would not actively go out and buy them. I really liked the yucca and plantain chips the best.

Involved Living Organization Panel – October 4, 2017
I volunteered to serve on a panel for the First Year Collegian learning community at Siebert Hall. The Hall Director Kyle invited the six Involved Learning Organizations (ILOs) to come talk to freshmen about our respective organizations. Some of the other ILOs are Off the Lake (a student-run theater production organization) and National Residence Hall Honorary. As the only MUNDO executive at the informal panel, I made sure to be armed with promotional flyers, both for MUNDO in general and for our London & Rome trip. This session only lasted an hour, with some structured question from Kyle and then time for us to interact with individuals. I discussed how I found out about MUNDO, what we do in the organization and what my specific role is, and how MUNDO has helped me become a better leader. I made a few connections from the panel but I do not think that any of them attended future meetings.

I prepared an index card with notes for what I wanted to say during the panel. I wrote about how students can learn about and be part of social change at local, national, and global level while exploring this school year’s theme concepts of freedom and citizenship. Our organization meets on Mondays 6:30 to 8:00 pm and we do educational road trips, study abroad, workshops, multicultural nights, service nights, and even host Strange Foods sessions in different residence halls. We go to Detroit, Circleville Pumpkin Show, Greek Festival, see Broadway shows, Cincinnati, Louisville, Memphis, New Orleans, and many more cities/events.

Urban vs. Rural – October 9, 2017

This event was discussion-based and allowed members to contrast the city and the country. We wrote down what came to our minds when we thought of urban and rural, and walked around the room to different blank posters and placed sticky notes on the sheets. I learned about how urban and rural environments have much more in common than we realize. When people think of rural, words that come to mind are corn, quiet, community, space, farm, underdeveloped, white, poor, and Amish. Actually, 2 to 3% of people in rural areas are farmers. Corn is among the top three crops grown in Ohio. The speaker who came to talk to us spoke to us about Amish gangs, which another ODNUM member chimed in on, saying that she saw a documentary about these gangs who try to create a sense of community and belonging while staying out of poverty. Furthermore, guns are so accessible today in both rural and urban areas. In rural places, you can obtain guns from flea markets, gun shows, and even Craigslist! Everyone in rural country has a gun, for hunting or other purposes.

On the other hand, urban life is viewed as full of traffic, a busy, fast-paced city life, diverse, and with more opportunities. Our speaker reported that 24% of homeless people are in the city; the majority are in rural places, finding refuge in abandoned buildings, barns, and sheds, and cars. More members thought that urban areas have a problem with heroin overdoses, but it happens in rural areas too. Crowdedness and segregation is not just an urban issue. We also discussed gentrification. For example, Columbus Upper Arlington neighborhood still is segregated because no people of color are allowed to own homes, a member brought up. Other Columbus neighborhoods are segregated usually by race/class, and there are countless similarities in other cities across the nation.

I was happy to hear member input. I learned where some members were from. One was from a rural place with many overdose incidents and one was from Milwaukee. Both urban and rural neighborhoods have drug use, poverty, guns, food deserts, and in general, a lack of resources in some way or another. I believe that actually spending more time in areas that we are unfamiliar with will help us increase our knowledge of those places and dispel preconceived notions regarding that area.

The 111th Circleville Pumpkin Show – October 21, 2017

On this Saturday, we took a charter bus of 50 people to Circleville, Ohio! The students were excited to have free transportation to and from this tiny city of 13,000.  We attended their 111th Pumpkin Show. They are well known for having contests for biggest pumpkins (by pound), tastiest pumpkin pie, and best painted pumpkins (by age category). In addition to artwork from children, there are pumpkins carved in various shapes and designs, like a Medusa pumpkin. Tons of carnival-style booths offered a variety of fare: pumpkin tacos, pumpkin pie, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin bubble tea, pumpkin pizza, and more. Boutiques selling clothing, home wares, and crafts also were present. There were carnival games and rides as well as a hog-calling contest which was interesting to see and hear. People stood on a stage in front of hundreds of spectators to call out and squeal “Here pig, here pig” in the hopes of winning. I enjoyed this festival!

The site www.pumpkinshow.com is where you can find more about their spectacular annual show!
Next year, they will have their show October 17-20, 2018.

Justice for All? – October 23nd, 2017

Discussing the book Just Mercy was a requirement for incoming freshmen. According to the Buckeye Book Community, here is a synopsis of the book:

“From one of the most brilliant and influential lawyers of our time comes an unforgettable true story about the redeeming potential of mercy.

Just Mercy tells the story of Bryan Stevenson, a young lawyer who founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system.

One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machinations and legal brinkmanship – and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.”

The book covers topics like criminology, decision-making, mass incarceration, and justice. The author Bryan Stevenson also came to campus to discuss the book and sign copies of it for readers.

“Controversy” – October 30th, 2017

This event was a requirement for the NY experience. Our program coordinator Julius started by playing the Michael Jackson Thriller video, which actually sparked controversy itself at the time of release because it raised concern that it had ties to the occult. We then read lyrics of Prince’s song “Controversy” and interpreted what the meanings behind the words could be. Julius’ PowerPoint walked us through some other polemical topics and how to address them when interacting with peers or older adults.

“Life as a Student Veteran” – November 6th, 2017

We brought in actual student veterans to talk about how they see service and leadership. According to www.veterans.osu.edu, there are “1,800 current veterans, dependents, and Active Duty, National Guard, and Reserve members attending as under-graduate and graduate students.” I myself do not have much knowledge or personally know more than a couple student veterans. I am hesitant to bring up their past service since it will most likely be hurtful to recall memories of war. I did not attend this session but I wish that I did so that I could have heard the perspectives of fellow students.

MUNDO Takes on Mo-Town: Detroit (Classic Edition) – November 10th, 2017
MUNDO explored the Motor City from a multicultural insider’s view and in terms of African American History.  We were able to see from some Michigan natives’ perspectives at Wayne State University. Stanley, on the far left in the gray hat, was originally from Flint, Michigan, and said there had always been problems in the city even before the water crisis. One student was studying urban studies and currently works for the city; he knew all these facts and figures about the area, even down to the square miles!

I enjoyed every part of the day – I was pleasantly surprised that a handful of other Young Scholars from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion joined MUNDO for this special trip. The Charles H. Wright Museum of African-American History is a wonderful resource that we spent three hours exploring, with the group being split up into two.

My tour guide was animated and she captured me in with how she described Africa and the experiences the people had to go through. This museum does a fantastic job of portraying these event from history; the walls are painted with vivid scenery and there’s sounds to make it more realistic. At a few points in the tour, my throat felt like it had a knot in it; I was hurt and felt pain as we heard about this sad history.

We ended by looking at art galleries. Additionally, I went to the basement to see student-made art and how African-Americans shaped our world with their inventions and other contributions in science and technology. Their accomplishments are often not praised enough, if at all. America has a long history with exploiting them, like in the case of Henrietta Lacks; her stem cells were used for research and it’s an injustice to her and her family. I actually read about her in a book called The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, and there’s countless other examples of exploitation like the Tuskegee Syphilis Studies.

The art galleries provoked my mind and made me analyze what the pieces were trying to evoke. A quote on the wall that I liked was “There is always fire in the most beautiful beginnings.” I also augmented my knowledge of riots and rebellions, and after the trip, I can now say that I can distinguish these two terms. Instead of saying Detroit riots, it may be more appropriate to call them the Detroit Rebellion of ’67, because a rebellion is acting against injustices and oppression, against imposed limitations that people refuse to accept. It is resistance.

This experience will aid me in planning the Spring Break civil rights trip to Memphis, New Orleans, and Birmingham. There is so much to history that I have not heard about; many details are hidden or just glossed over, and I desire to know more. Some quotes that I noted from the museum that I hope to carry with me throughout my life include: “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way” and “Only in the darkness can you see the stars.” Both of these were said by Martin Luther King, Jr.

World Kindness Day – November 13th, 2017

This special day, we joined forces to prepare meals. Student athletes, alumni, and organizations came together to make over 200,000 meals in just two hours. Half of the meals were donated to local pantries while the other half was donated to people affected by Hurricane Maria. The entire week, the OSU community engaged in acts of kindness. For example, at the Union on Wednesday the 15th, free Jeni’s ice cream was passed out, as well as some gift cards! KIND Snacks also collaborated with OSU to provide free granola bars to students.

Global Celebrations – November 20th, 2017

MUNDO explored how different cultures around the globe celebrated fall/winter! Christmas is such a well-known holiday but there are countless others that should be acknowledged. Tyler and Emma, two ODNUM members from the New York ACTION Team, presented to us. (Emma is also treasurer and Tyler is the non-traditional discovery opportunities coordinator.) To begin the presentation, there is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which occurs in September for two days. Chinese/Lunar New Year is another huge holiday. This one spans about two weeks and often other countries partake in festivities like Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Vietnam, and Taiwan. Lunar New Year will be February 16th, 2018 and it will be the Year of the Dog. We also learned about secular new year celebrations from different European countries. Then we ended by reflecting on common themes and practices we saw among the different celebrations. We had tasty snacks to sample like Chinese dumplings. We did not have time to create crafts for children.

Boricua (NY Pre-Travel Meeting) – November 27th, 2017

During this meeting, we handed out packing lists and a booklet breaking down each day of the winter break trip. Another version of the packet, with updated information, will be provided moving forward as we get closer to the trip date. Ivanna and Jose had a PowerPoint for the day-to-day activities to give us a sense of what we would be doing. Some planned activities include visiting Ellis Island, seeing two Broadway shows, touring El Museo del Barrio, and Chinatown. They will also book a private salsa dance session for MUNDO! The meeting culminated with the New York Action Team creating a GroupMe group chat so that all New York participants have a way to communicate with the group.

Fall Pinning Ceremony – December 5th, 2017
One of my favorite events that MUNDO puts on is the Fall Pinning Ceremony, where we recognize our members who were most involved throughout the semester. Those who have earned enough points (24) will receive their own MUNDO pin and certificate of achievement. Danny, the MUNDO president, and I planned this ceremony. We met a week beforehand to negotiate the tasks; we chose the menu together, and he ordered the food. I designed the certificates and flyer, and made major contributions to the PowerPoint, which had photos from the semester and listed the names of our active members AND our outstanding member of the semester!

I presented for the first time in front of the general body. I began with thanking people for coming and provided an overview of the presentation: a slideshow of photos, then certificates and pins, then the MUNDO pledge, then food, mingling, and games! We had popcorn, chicken tenders and sauces, a vegetable platter, and a dessert bar for our members. We borrowed games like Connect Four from the Union’s Resource Room so that members could unwind before finals officially started. We had 11 active members for the semester, not including ODNUM. Our Outstanding member was Victoria, who had 36 points, which means that she attended 12 of MUNDO’s meetings/events!

December 15th-21st, 2017
The NYC Winter Break experience 2017 (Deluxe Edition) focuses on the Latinx experience in NYC and beyond. We will visit the museum El Museo del Barrio and experience comedy from John Leguizamo.  We will explore global citizenship with a visit to the 9/11 Memorial and the United Nations building.  As a part of the experience,  we will have the chance to analyze the importance of breaking down racial, ethnic and cultural boundaries in order to truly live together as a community.  In celebration of MUNDO’s 21st anniversary,  we will be re-creating our first group photo at Rockefeller Center. The New York City Experience is a substance-free (no tobacco, alcohol, etc.) for all participants regardless of age.

I will post a blog post dedicated to the NYC Experience after the 21st! Please return to my e-portfolio then to read the details!

MUNDO is excited to bring more educational and transformative experiences for Spring 2018!

Below are the ODNUM members who were spotlighted during this semester: