The projects were great and very informative. They opened my mind and got me thinking about the College in another dimension. How I just assume things like courtesy or the contact zones. What I learnt most when carrying out my project was the diversity in Bryn Mawr. How some students’ views, histories and opinions are put into consideration, either lightly or heavily. The black students’ history at the college triggered my thoughts about the college. Whether Bryn Mawr really appreciates African students or take them for granted. I depended on oral histories for the fruition of my project which I would say, wasn’t very effective.

Chapter 3

Amalia Mesa-Bains: Divine Allegories

I feel that there are several places that I could go with the results of my project with Delilah.  Primarily, I'd like to talk to the Health and Counseling Center about what happened when Delilah and I called several times to schedule an interview and our calls were not returned.  We feel that this oversight may have left a gap in our data that would have been helpful if filled.  Additionally I'd like to consider sharing the information we gathered from our survey with the Health and Counseling Center, if they would be willing to set up a meeting with us.  Although it is obvious that this information does not encompass or speak for all of the students at BMC, we feel that it is still pertinent.

Environmental issues must be addressed, although they are extremely difficult to discuss.  In a conversation about it in person it is hard to engage other people.  In writing, it is even harder to get (and then, keep) the reader’s attention.  This explains why there are so many individuals who lack even a basic understanding of the harm that is being done to the planet, and continue to contribute to said harm.  The only way to have an impact on these issues is to educate the masses in a way that is both accessible and digestible.  The novel The Collapse of Western Civilization and the graphic novel As the World Burns: 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Stay in Denial both were written as attempts to reach this goal.

I was so impressed with all the groups that presented their six week projects this past week. I really enjoyed putting together my six week project and talking to people that I otherwise might not have gotten to meet. My project was very validating because for a long time, I thought that I was the only person who experienced and felt certain ways. However, hearing other Asian American students describing their struggle for identity and acknowledgment made me realize that I am not alone. While I don’t identify completely with the label Asian American, I do have some connection and it was nice to connect with that part of my identity that I felt I couldn’t share for so long.

Dear Jody,

Our project, ‘Invisible identities’ attempted to learn more about the experiences of low income and first generation students at Bryn Mawr and in higher education in general. For me the main points of our findings were that:

1) Both low income and first generation students face significant challenges (often arising out of a lack of resources at home and in past education) that make college a more difficult and stressful experience, in which they face a lower statistical probability of succeeding.

Princess Jefferson

A Project Worth While

            I am not one who naturally likes projects, and I must admit when my professor announced that my class and I would have to do a six week(s) project, I became very anxious. With the end of the semester drawing near, I began to wonder just how productive my project would be. But this project was different; unlike some professors, Anne Dalke, and her Partner in education Jody Cohen, allowed this project to be chosen based on what we, the student would like to conduct research on, and for this I was very grateful. I decided to conduct my project on the culture of politeness here at Bryn Mawr College.

I absolutely loved the project Emma and I completed on non-binary and trans students fitting in at a historically all-women’s college. I feel like the topic is very important and often overlooked within the community, and I am so glad we took on the ambitious task and came out on the other side with some very interesting information. I know I met so many people who I otherwise might not have ever spoken to because of this project, and that is an incredible aspect of my experience.

This project can be carried forward by further investigating the problems Jessica and I stated in the presentation and learn how to fix them. For example, since some grants are distributed after Bryn Mawr’s deadline for payment has passed, we can investigate whether the deadline can be extended to accommodate those students receiving grants and problems deterring this from happening. Also, we can emphasize the urgency for professors to finalize the syllabus so accessible formats can be created. This way every student will have the capability to have access to the needed books. Another problem is political correctness.