2019 - 20

This past year has been perhaps the most important and formative year of my life so far. Moving to Cincinnati and enrolling in UC was truly a watershed moment for me, I can say with the utmost certainty that I have grown and developed on my journey towards becoming a global citizen. Looking forward, I can only see my time at UC getting better from here.

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Despite the momentous occasion of moving to a new city back in August, the defining feature of this year for me would have to be Covid-19 and the resulting quarantine. The final quarter of my freshman experience was spent in quarantine in a 1-bedroom apartment in Chicago, and under any definition of global citizen scholar, this would not be what I had envisioned. Quarantine forced me to reassess some of the definitions and expectations I had in place for myself through a series of questions. Did I really need a designated classroom to learn? Can I adequately connect with friends and family if I don’t meet them face-to-face? How can I continue to expand my worldview when confined to one tiny corner of the world itself? I spent the past three months answering those questions, some more satisfactorily than others, and have come away with a better understanding of my values and a more resilient path towards global citizen scholarship.

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Above all else, quarantine has taught me flexibility. I had initially planned to participate in the Protégé programme over the summer to gain valuable research experience while also working towards completing my honours requirements. When the decision to extend the closing of the university through the end of the semester came through, I knew it would be unlikely for this to happen. With all the upheaval in the world around me and the mounting impossibility of sticking to my vision for the Spring semester, I decided to pivot and focus on myself and my family instead. My cousin and I set ‘quarantine resolutions’ for ourselves, keeping each other accountable while also supporting each other in pursuing new hobbies. For example, we discovered a shared interest in film and have watched over 40 movies, exploring classic cinema, perspectives on Nazi Germany, and iconic films that are often referenced in other popular media; the idea was to expand our horizons beyond the view from our window. Finding ways to continue learning and growing without the benefit of campus resources and the UC community was challenging, but I am now that much more prepared to keep progressing in the future. This time has taught me the importance of family and a good support structure and I look forward to using my newfound insight into my values to inform my future goals as I continue through my honours experiences.

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