student organization

Se Levanta: The MUNDO Puerto Rico Experience

I had the pleasure and honor of being a part of the action team that planned the MUNDO Puerto Rico experience that took place from December 14th-20th, 2018. In August 2018, the people on our action team began holding weekly meetings in order to set the itinerary for our group, budget our activities, recruit and reach out to potential participants, plan the pre-travel meeting, and more. The hours we put in to helped make the experience a success.

MUNDO loves learning and exploring our world. We loved Puerto Rico.

It was an exciting and enlightening experience planning and participating in this alternative break trip. This was an opportunity to learn in-depth about the history of Puerto Rico, the island of enchantment. I learned more about the multicultural background and how people live today, firsthand. Beforehand, I had such a superficial, limited knowledge of Puerto Rico and its people. Actually, I had done some research when I applied to participate in the experience for the winter break 2017. Unfortunately, Hurricane Maria happened, and severely damaged buildings, infrastructure, and in general caused extreme distress to the island. Thankfully, the island is recovering and is showing how resilient it is. We are thankful that we have the chance to go visit Puerto Rico in 2018, and learn about a variety of topics, and stimulate the economy.

We shared this flyer that I made around social media to attract people to apply.

Twenty four (24) Ohio State students and four Ohio State staff mentors came along, so there was a total of 28 people in our group. Each of us provided unique perspectives and contributed to an engaging time while there. To become involved in this experience, people must apply and write an essay or two, and ideally participate in MUNDO already to receive preference/priority for the trip. We then look over the applications and we have had to make cuts or create waitlists for people. We also let participants know of the payments and their deadlines.

In late November, we had our Pre-Travel Meeting, which is mandatory and lets us all recognize the faces we’d see daily later on in December. We did an exercise that entailed us writing “What we know about Puerto Rico,” “What we want to know more about,” and “What did we learn from the presentation?/What barriers or challenges do we see ahead?”

I created this flyer to remind participants to attend our pre-travel meeting.

Friday, December 14th, 2018
After finals finished at Ohio State, early in the morning of Friday, December 14th, 2018, we had a bus pick up students from north campus, west campus, and south campus. We headed for the airport, and stopped in Chicago briefly before landing in Puerto Rico around 4:30 PM. Our group was picked up by a bus, and it took us about half an hour to get to our hotel.

On the ride there, I looked out the windows to observe what this new environment was; I saw gas for 67 cents for a liter, which is 1/4 of a gallon, if I am correct ($2.68 for a gallon). I also saw McDonald’s, Domino’s, and KFC. There were some abandoned buildings, some of which had graffiti sprawled on them. There was a rent-a-car facility which also apparently had buy one get one free margaritas. These observations were interesting.

We stayed in Old San Juan, which is such a beautiful area, with colorful buildings and friendly drivers who let us pedestrians cross the street. There’s also lively music around different plazas, and street carts selling fresh fruit, fried snacks, or frappes, smoothies, and other delicious and refreshing drinks.

Eleven of us went to dinner together at a restaurant called Mojito’s, which was a few minutes walk behind our hotel. This experience is substance-free, even for those who are of legal age to drink. We must abide by Ohio State University policy and take this precaution. At Mojito’s, many of us had grilled chicken breast with rice and beans and salad. Some had pulled pork or beef. A few of us had plantains, and the one of us had mofongo (they had had it before). My meal consisted of grilled chicken breast with creole sauce (which is similar to a tomato sauce) and rice and beans with some salad.

Mojitos had friendly service that accommodated us easily.

After a filling meal, we walked around the area a bit to see how to navigate the streets. I learned that there are not really street lights in Old San Juan, yet drivers still act peacefully and get around without much honking going on. They also let pedestrians cross when there are no marked crosswalks (there are some marked crosswalks, but most of the time, you just look left and right and see if there’s a car, you can motion with your hand a Thank You to let the driver let you pass first). I appreciated that. A group of us stopped at an area where there was a live band and people dancing in an alley-like area. I felt some rain pelt down on us, and two other friends and I headed to the hotel. On the way back, we tried pina coladas from a smoothie and frappe stand.

Puerto Rico is also in the middle of their holiday season, which I think that I heard began in late November/early December and will last until January 6th or so. Decorations like trees, wreaths, and holiday lighting were ubiquitous. One restaurant we went to had multiple Christmas trees, of various sizes in its building. Even though you usually associate the holiday of Christmas with snow and cold temperatures, over here, it was a warm, balmy 80 degrees. Wearing lightweight, breathable clothing is a must, as is wearing sturdy shoes for getting around everywhere. The slag and brick streets of Old San Juan are not very accessible for people who use wheelchairs or have trouble climbing hills and inclines. I heard that people are trying to ameliorate this and make it more friendly for people of different abilities and needs.

Saturday, December 15th, 2018 
I got up around 7:45 AM, or well, 8 AM, since I was still in bed as one of my roommates was getting ready in the bathroom. Three women share a suite, while two men share a room. Each advisor/staff gets their own room. Breakfast at the hotel opens at 6:30 AM, which is around the time the sun rises. I got changed into a dress and got down to the breakfast room around 8:30 AM, and the whole group had to be in the lobby at 8:45 AM to depart from the hotel for our food tour, brought to us by Spoon Food Tours. We headed out at 9 after we checked in with each other and Julius Mayo, a founder of MUNDO, taught us some Spanish phrases to know. “Buen provecho” means “have a good meal/enjoy your meal,” and is the Spanish equivalent of the French phrase “Bon appetit.”

Our group split into two smaller groups for the food tours, which also allowed us to learn of the history of Old San Juan, and anything else we wanted to know. Our specific tour took about three hours to complete; we had about five different stops for food of some kind, and this all ended up being a meal for me. I should have skipped my breakfast that day because I could not finish some of the samples provided to me. Our tour guide majored in food and culinary science for her undergraduate career in the United States, and has been back in Puerto Rico to do some food tours for people, and who knows what next. She was incredibly helpful and prepared to discuss histories and answer our questions. I learned some new and neat facts on the tour, including these:

  • The streets and buildings of Old San Juan are designed in a way so that one side of the street is always in shade, and the other side gets some sun.
  • Wheat is an Old World ingredient.
  • The plaza was dedicated to 500 years since Puerto Rico was ‘discovered by Columbus.’ The plaza had a pillar dedicated to the ingredient sofrito, which is commonly used throughout Puerto Rican cuisine. This pillar is made of black granite and replicas of bowls and pots that date back to the Tainos, the indigenous peoples of Puerto Rico. These bowls and pots were used to make stews a long time ago.
  • Casa Blanca is an attraction and museum to visit. The name literally translates to ‘white house’ and was where Ponce de Leon’s family stayed. Ponce de Leon was the first governor of the island, and he also founded Florida.

The first place my specific group of 14 people went to was Don Ruiz, a roastery, museum, and café all in one. The coffee is locally grown and comes from Yauco. They have some food, pastries, coffee of all kinds, and smoothies. We had mallorcas, which are sweet bread rolls dusted lightly in powdered sugar. Inside of ours was some ham and cheese. It was such a great bite-size treat, and paired with hot chocolate, was delicious. One person in our group had coffee, and she poured some brown sugar into it to sweeten it up. FUN FACT: The darker the sugar, the purer it is. Sugar has natural ingredients but when made white, its nutrients get stripped away.

We were in the Ballaja barracks, or Cuartel de Ballaja.

Don Ruiz is housed in a large building that has dance classes, museums, and galleries on the lower level, and offices on the upper level. (We saw cute children in ballerina outfits dancing around the vicinity). This building was used as a military facility; 1,000 soldiers and their families once lived here. Then this place was headquarters for the infantry. During WWII, it was transformed into a hospital. Now, it commemorates history and the arts.

According to our tour guide, Danny, the Corsicans brought coffee over to Puerto Rico after 1736. The Corsicans did not want to compete with the settled-in Spaniards for territory or get in conflict with them in any way, so they settled down in the mountains in the southwest.

Although Don Ruiz is not selling bags of their coffee anymore due to Hurricane Maria’s impacts on the coffee industry (and many other industries), you can still check them out: http://www.donruizstore.com/

At our other stops, we tried French toast with citrus and pineapple slices, pulled pork with rice and beans and some fruity drinks, and a traditional dish called mofongo, which includes plantains. We stopped at a farmer’s market, where vendors sold fresh produce, handmade soaps, some souvenirs, drinks, and more. I was surprised to see mung beans and bok choy, but the world is becoming more globalized, and foods from different places get traded and shared around. Danny recommended reading “Eating Puerto Rico: A History of Food, Culture, and Identity”

The final stop on our culinary tour was Señor Paleta. This is a tiny popsicle shop, with no room to sit in. You order what you want, turn around, and leave. The heat made the popsicles melt so quickly. I could not even finish mine, and was deterred from buying popsicles in Puerto Rico again. The small shop had many customers flowing in and out of the area, for some quick relief.

Castillo San Felipe del Morro also known as Fuerte San Felipe del Morro or Castillo del Morro, is a 16th-century citadel located in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

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The group had about an hour and a half of free time before we met up to tour El Morro. At 3:30 PM, a park ranger named Anthony guided a tour of El Morro; this tour lasted from 45 minutes to an hour. The tour group consisted of about 20-25 people. Over half of us were MUNDO experience participants, accompanied by a pair of women who were OSU alumni from decades ago, and also a few families with small children.

We went to different levels of the fortress. Our first stop was the chapel, where soldiers would come to sit on the pews and pray. Above the chapel entrance were symbols of a shield, a pillar/column, and a bull skull. This symbolism referred to protection and sacrifice. People etched these symbols also because many of the soldiers were illiterate, and could not read or write letters.

O-H-I-O in El Morro

Building El Morro began in 1540, and construction would take 248 years to complete. This fortress was to protect Puerto Rico from invaders, as Puerto Rico was considered to be a treasure. The massive green space on the fortress’s exterior is the battlefield where people fought. A major invasion where invaders were close to succeeding happened in 1625, when the Dutch wanted to try to take over.

I learned a lot about the fortress and why Puerto Rico was such a treasure; it was in a prime position in the Caribbean. The east trade winds would help incoming ships maneuver to the island. Plus, Puerto Rico was the gateway to the Americas, and to wealth and resources.

At the end of the tour, our guide Anthony asked us to think about what our treasure was, and what we will do to protect and preserve it, whether it be culture, language, family history, or whatever else. This was so powerful to me. He left such a good impression.

Sunday, December 16th, 2018 
I woke up around 8:15 AM, and got breakfast: an omelet and two thin slices of watermelon. Then two friends and I set out to explore Old San Juan and check out an artisan market.

I really liked the art museum the entire group visited in the afternoon: Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico. This museum is devoted to the visual arts of Puerto Rico and has a permanent collection depicting art from the 17th century to the present. It also has local and international exhibits. We spent a few hours exploring the exhibits and the outdoor garden. The outdoor garden was my favorite part. I also enjoyed hearing some live performers practice their music on the museum’s ground floor.

The murals in the outdoor gardens captivated me most.

The evening was free for everyone to explore some more. A group of eight of us went to Pirilo Pizza Rustica for pizza and other food. After an hour wait to be seated, we climbed up some steep stairs to the second floor. I ordered a Hawaiian pizza, and two slices made me full. I saved the other two slices for a meal the next day.

Monday, December 17th, 2018
This was another busy day, one where we were outside for the majority of the day. Sunscreen and water were absolutely essential. Our group went on an all-day expedition: El Yunque Rainforest & Bioluminescent Bay Combo Tour. El Yunque is the only tropical rainforest in the U.S. National Forest System!

At 10 AM, 24 students and one MUNDO advisor boarded one van, and the other three advisors went into another van, to go to the same destinations. The driver was our guide and he told us stories throughout this experience. He was steering with his left hand and holding his microphone with his right hand, which may seem precarious but he maintained good driving. He said that 90% of what Puerto Rico consumes is imported. Additionally, he explained that Old San Juan is separated from the larger island and connected by bridges as a strategy to provide a safe haven for Spanish ships.

Here are more facts and history that people should know:

  • 1898 marked the year of the Spanish-American War. The United States won over Spain and took over control of Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam. Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory. It was the last colony of the New World.
  • The Tainos, the indigenous peoples of what is now Puerto Rico, were decimated by colonizers (not ‘conquerers’ or ‘civilizers’) and diseases that their immune systems could not defend against. Tainos were enslaved and forced to find gold in the rivers, where the mineral was plentiful. Now, the rivers do not have gold in them besides specks of glitter among the rocks in the riverbeds. The culture of the Tainos is alive today in Puerto Rican culture, though. Not all is lost.
  • Plantains come from Africa. Different foods come from different parts of the world, and make their way into Puerto Rican cuisine.
  • The indigenous population called their land Boriquen, and they were Boricua.


We visited the Yokahu Observation Tower, where we could see far away and above the tree tops.
We also stopped at La Coca Falls, Angelito Trail, and for a late lunch/early dinner, we ate at one of the 60 restaurants at Los Kioskos de Luquillo.

At 5 PM, we arrived at Laguna Grande Bioluminescent Bay, which is one of the bays that people can visit to see the bioluminescent creatures and their blue/white glow. As the sun was setting, we were given a demonstration/overview of how to kayak correctly and safely. We would proceed single-file-kayak through the mangrove forests to the bay, and then back to shore. This entire process would take about two hours. I really enjoyed kayaking, but I was nervous about doing so in the dark. My partner Briana and I hit the trees just a few times. Other pairs also ran into the trees. Once everyone emerged in the lagoon, our eyes slowly adjusted to the deep blue night sky and the twinkling stars that dotted it. I had never seen that many stars before. The company took out a large black tarp to cover people with, and once under the tarp, I swirled my hand in the water. While kayaking back to our start location, it felt faster and I saw some bats fly overhead.

I wore the wrong outfit for kayaking. My sides and entire bottom half were soaked, as were my shoes. Sandals would have been more appropriate.

Around 9 PM, we arrived, soggy and exhausted, at our hotel. I quickly went to sleep after such a tiring but terrific day.

Tuesday, December 18th, 2018
We had our service project in the morning from 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM at Banco de Alimentos, a food bank! MUNDO frequently volunteers at food banks for our service sites on our breaks. Long pants, t-shirts, and closed-toe shoes were required to participate. I had much fun while volunteering, even though I was tired. At first, I helped sort food to see if they were expired or not. If not, I put them onto the appropriate shelves. Later, the whole group participated in labeling cheese and putting them back into boxes. During the 10-15 minute break, I sat on some wooden boards, propped my left arm up on my knee, and closed my eyes. We went through hundreds of boxes of cheese. We made a lot of progress and helped the food bank tremendously.

We had the rest of the day free until 6 PM, when we’d have to meet up again as a giant group to walk over to our alumni dinner at Princesa Gastrobar. We were able to have dinner with six alumni. We were split among four tables, and this allowed for more intimate conversations. Two of the alumni who came out were actually high school best friends, who remained close to this day! When we left dinner, I could hear the sounds of the coquis, which are frogs. I never once saw this frog while on the island, but I definitely heard them throughout my experience. A small group of us went to Poet’s Passage to hear live spoken word

Our group enjoyed meeting with OSU alumni!

Wednesday, December 19th, 2018
We had our ‘free day’ today, which meant the group had nothing planned and each participant could go wherever they liked (within reason) and do the activities they wanted to (that were appropriate). I walked around to the Museum of the Americas, which I highly recommend! With a student discount, my price for admission was just $4.00. I spent an hour or two here, exploring the different exhibits. Some were dedicated to art, while others discussed African heritage, different cultures of the Americas, and colonization in Puerto Rico. Later, I visited Casa Blanca. This is a sprawling estate that I also recommend people see. I made it back to the hotel to try to nap, but decided to grab a light meal with friends before our afternoon activity.

In the late afternoon/evening, I embarked on a sunset boat tour with five other students. We were at sea for two hours, and saw along the coasts of Old San Juan.

From the boat, we could see the colorful cluster of buildings.

This sunset tour was another favorite aspect of my experience. It provided truly remarkable views and allowed me to relax.

I packed an OSU tank top and OSU shirt for my trip. As an OSU student, pack a few school merchandise for anywhere you go. We always ran into Buckeyes and Buckeye fans.

Thursday, December 20th, 2018
We had to leave Puerto Rico for Columbus today. In the morning, we took a group photo at the “I <3 PR” sign close to our hotel. Then around 1 PM, we made it to the airport to check our bags, which took an hour or so of waiting. Then we waited even longer for security. There were so many people at the San Juan Airport. I had never waited so long to go through security before. We had some delays and dilemmas, and stayed in the airport longer than we expected to. Nevertheless, we were happy to finally move along and get back to Columbus.

Friday, December 21st, 2018
At around 3 am, we made it to the Columbus airport, a few hours later than expected. One participant stayed behind in Puerto Rico to be with her family in Ponce. It was a great experience, and on the weekend, all participants would get the chance to fill out a survey to share their thoughts on the experience and offer suggestions for future trips to Puerto Rico.

REFLECTION

I felt fortunate to visit Puerto Rico and see all that it had to offer. I learned more about the history of its colonization and the different influences from Spaniards, Africans, and Tainos that shaped the identity and cultures of Puerto Rico. Throughout the trip, I also made some public health observations:

  • The Walgreens under our hotel has a sign on their checkout counter that says that they check everyone for their ID when they buy alcohol, regardless of age!
    • This was interesting to me! I didn’t see anywhere else that did this, so I want to look further into this.
  • Sidewalks in Old San Juan are overwhelmingly not accessible for people with wheelchairs or other abilities. The up-hill trek can also be difficult for people. Some sidewalks and some streets cannot be visited altogether.
  • I saw advertisements on buildings for San Juan Health Center and Molina Healthcare. I made notes of what healthcare resources were available. At a bookstore, I also was tempted to buy a book on public health in Puerto Rico, but decided not to, so I could spend more on more filling meals.
  • We could easily find food trucks and food stands offering fried snacks, pizza, and popcorn. Even our food tour guide Danny said that people’s diets consisted of fried foods, starches and carbs, with little vegetables. This was reflected at many restaurants that I went to. Some restaurants did not offer a lot of vegetables; if there were, it was usually light-colored lettuce with some shavings of carrots and some pieces of tomatoes. People could still be at risk for malnutrition and lack some nutrients that they would get from vegetables.

Overall, I am very pleased with my experience, and proud of myself for playing a part in it coming to fruition. My experiences here have encouraged me to think about what I treasure and value: my cultures, my family heritages and histories, and the languages that my family members speak. Another thought that arose from my contemplation was that I hope people do not visit a place just because of its allure, its “exoticness,” or its tropical climate or warmer temperatures. People should also take the time to learn about the stories of the individuals who live in that place. How did that place get to where it is today? Were things always like this? It is important to make keen observations and to interact with the locals.

This appears to be a red hibiscus flower. There’s beauty everywhere, especially around Puerto Rico, which is also called the island of enchantment,

I want to thank my student organization, MUNDO, and the peers and staff for making this experience enlightening and enriching for me. We had plenty of conversations about our own lives and our perspectives. It was also inspiring to witness how Puerto Rico was recovering and thriving once more. I have a deeper and broader understanding of Puerto Rican history, culture, and society, especially around Old San Juan.  This trip also inspired me to think about being proud of your heritage and always remembering your roots.

MUNDO – Autumn 2017

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 

Four executive board members for MUNDO!

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.

One of our Spring Break 2018 ACTION Team Leaders, Nick!

Welcome Week Event – August 21st, 2017

The Welcome Week flyer I created for the event

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.

MUNDO had a strength in numbers when we volunteered cleaning up a 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!

Tinker Toys, a vintage game, allows you to build whatever using rods and different shaped pieces.

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.

We utilized public transportation to go to this community event.

Greek Festival Flyer

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!

We had boxes of donations for CRIS.

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.

A flyer that a Baker West student created

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.

MUNDO regularly returns to Star House to complete service.

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.

Foods that may be strange to us can actually be normal in other countries.

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

When comparing and contrasting the city versus the country, we opened our minds to new perspectives.

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

This festival has everything pumpkin-related that you could imagine!

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

We need to be comfortable with talking about uncomfortable situations.

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 thank our veterans for serving our country.

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!

A panel of Wayne State University students and staff spoke about what they love about Detroit and what they’ve witnessed in the city and on campus.

The WSU students are studying public affairs, criminal justice, and urban studies. All of these are important fields that contribute directly to the community! Hunter (the girl in green) wants to be a police officer!

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

Holiday celebrations involve more than just Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa.

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

Our pre-travel meetings help our participants get an idea of what to expect on the trip.

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!

MUNDO is grateful to have members who are the future leaders in social change!

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!

I made a New York promotional flyer. We had difficulty recruiting members for this trip, which was a surprise to me.

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

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

Nick always brings fresh ideas to our group and is active in a business fraternity outside of MUNDO!

 

MUNDO has our first ever Service Chair, Celine! She is also an Honors Community Advocate for Lincoln Tower. She is great at working with people and is a valuable part of our team.

Celebrating Diversity with MUNDO

A craft I made for a James Cancer Hospital patient. I initially started with a big red blob of paint and it became the state bird of Ohio, a chubby, chirpy red cardinal. People say that if you come across one, it is good luck!

One of my favorite experiences in college so far has been joining the student organization MUNDO (Multicultural Understanding through Nontraditional Discovery Opportunities). I first heard of this club during the summer when I was researching OSU clubs online and checked out MUNDO’s website. I was drawn in by the field trips abroad to places like Rome and London. As I attended more meetings (I should have gone more frequently), I realized MUNDO is much more than simply going to new countries and sight-seeing. They do workshops that really make you learn and engage with people of different backgrounds. For example, we had presentations about homelessness, Islamophobia, a brainstorming session about how to address global issues, as well as excursions to the Greek Festival or Amish country. MUNDO also does trips to theaters to see shows like Rent. We also volunteered and made crafts for patients or visit Star House during a few Service Nights. Overall, I learn how to be an active participant in the world around me and contribute to my community!

Getty Art Center in L.A.

Venice Beach! This was the first time I saw the ocean and the view was gorgeous. We arrived right when the sun was beginning to set, and watching it recede into the horizon was gorgeous.

I discussed my L.A. trip with MUNDO  in a previous post (see “What I Did Over Winter Break”). That trip was the first time I went across the country and so far from home. On the trip I did not know anyone, being a new member and a freshman. But I was exposed to new foods and cultures and a different vibe in L.A. This trip sparked my fire for becoming involved with MUNDO on a deeper level, and I want to plan one of their future trips!

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I continued my involvement with MUNDO and exploration of the country in Spring 2017:
The Multicultural Leadership MLK Experience on Saturday, January 14, allowed me to learn more about what comprises leadership through exploration of African-American history and the Civil Rights movement at both the Muhammad Ali Center in Kentucky and the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati. This trip only costs $8 and was worth every penny! (Lunch included)

I was drawn in by these murals illustrating Ali’s six major pillars to life: confidence, spirituality, respect, conviction, dedication, and giving.

Around 10 am, the group of 25 students (undergraduate and graduate) and staff members took a self-guided tour of the Muhammad Ali Center, a museum about Muhammad Ali, the boxer and activist. I learned that his real name is Cassius Clay Jr. and he participated in his first match at age 18. He did not drink soda, and he trained vigorously. He lived and breathed boxing. He had a signature shuffle, which I saw in videos that were displayed on screens throughout the museum. There were also several art galleries dedicated to Ali, and a number of art pieces intrigued me. Not only did the museum include parts of Ali’s life, but it also incorporated information about inventors who were people of color and/or women and did not receive widespread recognition (if any) for their contributions to society. It opened my eyes even more to how I had not heard about this individuals, and how some people fail to see people-of-color as human or as valuable contributors to society.

At noon, we departed for Cincinnati for the National Underground Railroad Museum/Freedom Center, which was equally captivating and interesting. We had a docent walk us through the museum, exploring slavery and walking through rooms with the walls painted to make it look like we had stepped back in time to the 1800s. The kind, wise docent told us stories with much emotion. We learned about how people fought to end slavery. For example, one brave man was one of the few in his community to have a printing press, which he used to help spread the message against slavery. Opponents dumped his machine into the Ohio River a couple times. When he kept retrieving his machine and remained determined to print about and advocate for this movement, locals in the community shot him to death. Another heartbreaking story was when a woman slave murdered her children (including slashing the throat of her toddler) because she was caught escaping with them and did not want them to ever be slaves and live through that experience.

Each pebble in the column stands for a life lost to slavery. According to my docent at the Freedom Center, if the Middle Passage was spread apart like the Red Sea, bones of the deceased would completely cover the path from Africa to the Americas. That is how many people died along the journey as well as when they arrived by force.

At the Freedom Center, I also learned facts about modern-day racism towards African-Americans. When Obama was president, the amount of hate groups actually increased 830%, according to our docent. That number astonished me because I had no idea that there was so much hate after he became our president. I did not expect that number to be that high. I believe that most of the reason for the sudden skyrocketing in hate group formation is due to the fact that they are judging Obama by his appearance without taking the time to get to know who he truly is. I have encountered hate and disrespect for my skin color and differences. (Mini anecdote: When Obama was inaugurated in 2008, I remember watching on a TV in my elementary school gymnasium. I was in the fourth-grade, and although I did not know about his platform at all at the time, my class did a mock-vote and I still voted for him.)

In summary, this day-trip exposed me to new facts about the sad history Africans had to endure and how we are feeling aftereffects still. Racism exists, even more so in subtle ways built into institutions. They, along with other people of color, feel inferior. What I can do after this experience is to continue to document my travels and spread more awareness about these issues. I can talk to my friends and classmates about how I feel and what I think can be done to prevent similar instances from occurring ever again. Despite that I cannot change history, I have responsibility to affect how the future turns out. What’s a little intimidating is that I am at a ripe age and now is the time for me to take action.

Image may contain: 13 people, people smiling, people standing and outdoor

At our last meeting for the 2016-2017 school year (4/17/17) This is the aftermath of celebrating the Mexican Easter tradition of using cascarones (eggs filled with confetti) and smashing or crumbling the eggs over the heads of friends/family to wish them good luck.

As the spring semester continued, I decided to step up and take on a leadership position in MUNDO! On their executive board, I have the honor of being the Social Media and Marketing Correspondent for the 2017-2018 year. This role entails keeping social media pages for MUNDO (Facebook, Twitter) updated, regularly emailing members so they stay informed, and designing graphics to promote our group and gain new members! I want to thank everyone in MUNDO, from the members to the advisors, for making me a better person inside and out.

About Me

 

Photo taken by Jo McCulty, OSU Communications

I am a rising senior from Cleveland, Ohio, majoring in Public Health with a Sociology specialization. I am minoring in Asian American Studies!

My love for scarlet and gray and everything OSU-related began before I was even a teenager. I was inducted into the Office of Diversity and Inclusion – Young Scholars Program during the sixth grade. This program has helped guide me in my journey to college and was extremely influential in getting me to where I am today. YSP provides me with academic, social, and financial support. I continue to give back to the program through being an Ambassador (Autumn 2016 – Autumn 2018) and a Summer Bridge Experience Peer Leader (Summer 2017). One of my passions is helping others achieve higher education, especially first-generation college students and/or minorities! YSP is my second family.

A leadership role I was involved in is Co-President for Global Health Initiative, a student organization that raises awareness about global health issues and the vast field of public health while empowering members with knowledge and skills to advocate for others and make a difference. We have international volunteering, local volunteering, educational outreach with youth, and events (which include lobbying at Capitol Hill each spring, and major campus events such as Research Mix & Mingle and Pre-Professional 101). We connect students to faculty who conduct research (RM&M) and to upperclassmen or graduate students in their majors/careers (Pre-Prof 101) to help them gain more perspectives and develop professionally! During my freshman year, I was general body member and during my second year, I was event planning co-chair.

Another organization I have been involved with since freshman year is MUNDO, which stands for Multicultural Understanding through Nontraditional Discovery Opportunities! We learn about different cultures and perspectives, serve around the community and around the world, and lead our peers in being open-minded to diversity. We cover a wide range of topics related to social justice and human rights. I have participated in their Los Angeles experience for winter break 2016, their New York City experience for winter break 2017, and planned and participated in their Spring Break Experience for 2018. For freshman year, I was an active member, and evolved to being Social Media & Marketing Correspondent and an Action Team Member for sophomore year. For my junior year, I hope to be on action teams for one or both of the academic breaks.

Outside of academics, I enjoy reading, spending time with friends, and listening to music. Writing in my e-portfolio is another hobby that I enjoy greatly! In the future, I plan on attending graduate school (getting a combined 3+2 BSPH/MPH in Health Behavior and Health Promotion). While I am not certain what careers I want to pursue, I want to continue exploring my options to narrow down my ideas. Currently I am highly interested in mental health, minority health, community health work, maternal and child health, and more. I am always open to making new connections so do not hesitate to send me an email! Furthermore, I am willing to offer advice to other students! (dang.157@osu.edu)