This year started off a little bit rougher than last. I tore my ACL in June playing softball, so I was on crutches for the first couple weeks of being on campus. It definitely made the transition much harder, trying to balance my recovery with classes and involvements, but it all worked out in the end. I learned how to take time for myself a bit more. And I am much better now! My surgeon even suggested I try running a 5k this summer.
Besides that though, my year went incredibly well! My LGBTQ service club Students for Diversity in Education through Service (SDES) started hosting meetings and volunteer outings at Star House and BRAVO during the first semester, and we added volunteering with EquitasHealth during second semester. I especially appreciate my other executive board members for helping to get this club off the ground and to get going. We have about 15 regular members and are very excited for the Fall Involvement Fair to start off next year!
During the fall, I started as Treasurer of GLSEN Columbus. GLSEN Columbus is a fairly new chapter of the national organization GLSEN that works to create safe schools for all students K-12 regardless of gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation. We worked very hard to put some solid events, like tabling at events and speaking at conferences, on the calendar for this year, and had a successful fundraiser in March! Thanks to some support from the folks at GLSEN national and the hard work of my friend and GLSEN chair, Alex Ryan, I think this year was a success and I’m looking forward to continuing next year.
In October I started working at David’s Tea at the Easton Town Center. I really enjoy the bright atmosphere and optimistic culture of this company, and this position has helped me to develop my customer relations and sales skills. I also like being able to work in an environment outside the scope of campus and widen my social net to some people outside of Ohio State.
Additionally, I participated in the Second-year Transformational Experience Program (STEP). STEP allowed me to reflect on what I would like to accomplish and what aligns with my goals, interests, and personality. I am going to be using my STEP grant to travel to the Netherlands and Sweden for two weeks in May 2018 on the Sustainable Business Global Lab through the Fisher College of Business. Traveling for education abroad is one of my college goals, as well as part of the Honors & Scholars GOALS, and being a part of STEP has allowed me to broaden my global awareness. Sustainability has become an interest and a priority of mine during my time in college, and going on this trip will allow me to learn about sustainability from world leaders, and experience different cultures at the same time.