The Honors class I took this quarter was, by far, the most amazing class I've ever taken. It was taught by Vicky Lawson, who specializes in relational poverty research. The document above is my final paper for the class. It is all of my reflections from the class content. This course was extremely meaningful because it changed the way I see the world around me. Homelessness and poverty aren't the result of individual faults; the system is broken. The most important thing we can do to restore humanity to those who have had it stripped away is to listen to their stories and just say hello.
These pictures are of the Licton Springs Tiny Village in Aurora, Seattle. As part of my Honors 221 class, I joined a research team that was investigating the effectiveness of the tiny village. We went to the village itself, interviewed residents, and analyzed qualitative data for common themes afterwards. Being a part of this project was extremely eye opening. I got to actually talk to residents of tiny villages, and hear their stories. They were all very kind and willing to share.
One of the highlights of my winter quarter was the UW Leaders program! I was accepted to the program at the beginning of this quarter, and I attended the winter retreat in January. My mentor (Jenny) and fellow mentee (Katherine) are pictured on the left, and my entire UWL 2018 Cohort is pictured in the top right. The UWL program provided weekly workshops on personal and professional development, including lessons about resumes, intentionality, mindfulness, and more. I'm very grateful to the UWL program for giving me skills and confidence I'll use for the rest of my life.