Madeline Marshall: Year in Review
- Global Awareness
Thus far, my Global Awareness has been cultivated mainly through my coursework and by my being active in the Morrill Scholarship program (as well as other activist endeavors). I have shaped my coursework such that I am exposed to a variety of different perspectives, and have been able to understand how it is that we have created social hierarchies in favor of Western ideals. I have taken it upon myself to make sure to spend time reading Eastern philosophy and critical theory, and have chosen Japanese as my foreign language. I have spent much of my work in classes applying international, anti-imperialist lenses, so as to better understand the different mentalities and discourses surrounding different global perspectives. As I move forward, I plan to spend more time applying what I have learned in my International theory course (among others) to focus not only on US interactions with the globe, but also on the many realms of academia that are swept under the rug by westernized academia.
- Original Inquiry.
Thus far, I have had quite a few experiences with research and artistic inquiry. This year, I presented an original research project at the Denman Undergraduate Forum under the mentorship of Professor Nancy Ettlinger. The project, which focused on a Foucauldian analysis of the Ohio Juvenile Justice System, has allowed me to form interdisciplinary questions and analysis and understand how I want to move forward with academic inquiry. I am also in the process of submitting the same project for publication in a few different journals. Alongside this endeavor, I am involved in poetry and jazz here at OSU, and am in the process off writing my own compilation of theory-entangled poems. As I move forward, I hope my many research projects will help me to determine what my senior honors thesis will be and, likewise, help me prepare for graduate study in Critical theory.
- Academic Enrichment
I have structured my Honors Contract in such a way that it will illustrate my passion for large picture, interdisciplinary thinking. I hope to move forward in an academic profession of Critical theory and, as such, I have chosen a major and set of minors that allows for the most interdisciplinary approach to asking critical questions of critical questions. My Critical and Cultural theory minor (along with my GEs) has allowed me to use Philosophy as a spring board for further exploration. Philosophy acts as a sort of base foundation for me to leap from department to department to understand the perspectives of everything from Women and Sexuality studies to Comparative Studies to Geography. I hope that my plan will allow me to continue to explore my many interests and, furthermore, help me narrow down my research focus as I approach graduate school. I am currently interested in the intersection of Queer theory, Anthropocene theory, and narrative art. My current program (along with the flexibility of the honors program) has made this possible for me.
- Leadership Development
Thus far, aside from actively attempting to be a leader of my peers (as I learned in the Leadership Collaborative my first year), I have had leadership positions in a few different organizations. First, I have been the lead alto saxophone in multiple jazz groups since I have been here, and have learned about how to cross cultural boundaries and help people to be more open and excited about the powerful cultural tool that is jazz. I am also on the executive board for OSU’s poetry group on campus, Never Let Your Pen Dry, where I have helped bridge the gap between OSU and the greater Columbus community. Likewise, we have helped intertwine social activism and creativity, a truly powerful conversation. Last, I was a Morrill Scholars Student Leader for the Social Justice and Diversity Team, where I mentored freshman Morrill Scholars, and helped them to find and sharpen their individual passions. All of these things directly link back to my passions for activism, creation, and dissolving the lines that divide genres, etc.
- Service Engagement
In general, much of my service engagement has been a part of my being a Morrill Distinction Scholar. Along with being a student leader (as mentioned previously), I took part in a Buck-I-Serv trip in which we worked in Baton Rouge to help with flood relief in communities of Color. Likewise, I was a part of the Columbus Organization the Juvenile Justice Coalition, where I worked with incarcerated youth as well as the court system to help undo some structural inequities in our justice system. Now, I am working with the OSU Student Farm doing sustainable agriculture and outreach with the whole Columbus urban farming community. In all, I am working to create service opportunities that align with my other creative and academic interests, to try and better connect this crazily entangled web of a world.