[The Home Page will show a running blog of your recent posts, which are categorized and show on that category’s page. Please delete this post or edit with your own information.]
Year in Review
[ “Year in Review” is where you should reflect on the past year and show how you have evolved as a person and as a student. You may want to focus on your growth in a particular area (as a leader, scholar, researcher, etc.) or you may want to talk about your overall experience over the past year. For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]
G.O.A.L.S.
The G.O.A.L.S. of the Honors & Scholars program push students to become involved, educated, and innovative actors within their communities. The principles of Global Awareness, Original Inquiry, Academic Enrichment, Leadership Development and Service Engagement are the foundations on which an undergraduate may delve further into different opportunities, such as internships, research, or community service. In striving to achieve success in each principle, students partake in a more well-rounded collegiate experience and learn how to affect the world outside the classroom. The G.O.A.L.S of the Honors & Scholars program have genuinely shaped my first year experience at The Ohio State University.
Global Awareness is a topic extremely relevant to my academic endeavors. I am currently pursuing a double major in International Studies and World Literature, along with a minor in Chinese, so global awareness has become the basis of my education. I hope to utilize my interests in the cultures of the world to study abroad during my time as an undergraduate. In the past I have travelled to China with the purpose of experiencing the culture first-hand. I now hope to again make the journey across the Pacific Ocean to further develop my Chinese language abilities. The department of East Asian Languages is providing Intensive Chinese Language in Suzhou, a summer abroad program dedicated to improving students’ language skills by a year in seven weeks, which I hope to be accepted into. In the future, after graduating and pursuing a law degree, I hope to use my both my Chinese language skills and my knowledge of the increasing interconnectedness of the world that I will gain in my field of study, as mechanisms to enact social change as an international human rights attorney.
Research is essential to formulating new hypotheses and discovering new ideas. I plan to graduate from OSU with research distinction, with a project of my own design. Original Inquiry is a principle I hope to utilize to complete this goal. Through Original Inquiry, I plan to conduct an undergraduate investigation that is conducive to connecting my two majors together.
Academic Enrichment is critical to the collegiate education experienced by every Honors & Scholars student. I strive to enhance in my collegiate career every day. In deciding to pursue a double major, I have committed myself to a grueling class schedule. I plan to continue participating in a demanding course load throughout my four years at OSU.
In graduating from a small high school and beginning my collegiate career at a large university, I have discovered that leadership positions come around far less often. I plan to achieve the status of a leader throughout my time at OSU, by going after the opportunities given to me. Currently, I am in the process of applying for a Resident Advisor position along with a Mentor-A-Buckeye position, which will both commence in my Sophomore year, and will grant me opportunities to partake in Leadership Development.
Finally, Service Engagement is a principle of the Honors & Scholars Program which I hold close to my heart. In the first semester of my freshmen year, I have consistently volunteered for Buckeye Civic Engagement Connection, which is a program run through the office of Social Change at OSU. In this program, I volunteer my time in a college preparatory program at the East High School site, which is centered around preparing students to take their ACT and applying to different colleges and scholarships. The driving force behind the program is to motivate students, and to provide them with the resources for their college and career goals.
Career
[“Career” is where you can collect information about your experiences and skills that will apply to your future career. Like your resume, this is information that will evolve over time and should be continually updated. For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]
Artifacts
My first artifact is a slideshow presentation about the analysis of the film Playground. The project was an assignment within my Advocates for Children and Education (ACES) seminar, and was completed by myself and several other classmates. This film sheds light on the Sex Trade within the United States of America. The documentary begins as filmmaker Libby Spears goes undercover in Southeast Asia to expose child sex trafficking in the region, only to learn that the practice is actually most dominant in the United States of America, one of the most developed countries in the world. This project focusses on the plot of the film and then relates several portions of the documentary to the ACES Pillars, which are the foundations of this Scholars program. The project then highlights critiques of the film and cites a course of action that should be taken based on the problems showcased in the picture.
ACES Pillars Film Project: Playground
About Me
Hello! I am Kate Townsend and I am a first year student planning to double major in International Studies and World Literature. After completing my undergraduate education, I hope to attend law school. I hope my law degree will grant me the opportunity to implement social change in areas regarding human rights and civil liberties on both a national and global scale.
Throughout my education, english and literature courses have always been my favorite classes. I absolutely love analyzing historical texts in the hopes of understanding their modern value. In high school, I had an extremely impactful A.P. Literature and Composition teacher, who truly inspired me to recognize the value and power of words. She taught me the importance of being able to manipulate words to affect the feeling of the reader. In my career, I plan to implement the transferrable skill of writing by drafting laws and creating speeches that effectively lobby my position.
In high school, I was extremely involved in both my academic enrichment and extra-curricular activities. I attended Bishop Ready High School, a small Catholic school on the west side of Columbus. I made the honor roll and received an academic letter, along with several Student of the Month and Extra Effort Awards. I was also a member of several clubs including, National Honor Society, Beta Club, Multicultural Club and the Softball team. I had a great high school experience. I was pushed academically by all of my teachers, and I was able to succeed in both honors and A.P. courses throughout my four years. I also found that the clubs I was involved in granted me a home at Bishop Ready. The faculty, academics and students themselves, definitely ensured that Bishop Ready High School will always be my home.
So why OSU?
I always told myself that The Ohio State University was not the college for me. I had lived in Upper Arlington, a suburb of Columbus, for almost my entire life. I felt that I wanted to experience life away from home in a big city, far away from Ohio. However, my family convinced me to attend the OSU campus tour in November of my senior year in high school. Ironically, this ended up being my only college visit. I absolutely fell in love with the campus along with all the university had to offer, and I knew it was going to be my home for the next four years. Now that I am attending OSU, I know I have made the right decision. My scholars group, Advocates for Children and Education (ACES), enabled me to come to know one of my favorite parts of OSU. Through ACES, I am currently involved in volunteering for Buckeye Civic Engagement Connection, which has become the highlight of my first semester. I hope to continue to become involved in other extra-curricular activities as I continue my time at OSU, and I cannot wait to find what the university has in store for me.