Tokyo, JA 5/18-26/17

Santa Fe College truly encourages their students to broaden their experiences--to break out of the bubble we become so accustomed to; it makes sense to me now why their Study Abroad and International programs are so popular. Not only do the programs guarantee an experience of a lifetime--we are also thankful to have Anita, one of the study abroad advisors, and Jorie, the Japan program leader, in making the experience much more smoother because studying abroad can be intimidating.

I was awarded with Santa Fe's McRae Study Abroad, which covers more than 75% of study abroad expenses for the Japan program. With this award and support of other scholarships, my family/friends, and mentors, I arrived to Tokyo, Japan (safe and sound despite my jet lag because of the 13 hour difference) on May 18th, 2017. I had the opportunity to study Japanese business culture and relations. Currently, I am working on a project dedicated to Social Psychology, my intended  major, regarding the collectivism in Japan versus the individualism in the United States. I will specifically research how Japanese people integrate their identities with their work as compared to people in the US who value work as a separate entity. Factors I will consider are culture, gender differences, age, income, which jobs are highly valued, common, expected etc. and even vacationing. 

STAY TUNED FOR MORE!

Jackonsville, FL 2/24-26/17

At this year's Florida Collegiate Honors Council conference, I was awarded the $1000 Dr. Mary Jo Henderson scholarship, which is awarded to the "state / community college honors student who best exemplifies the scholarship, leadership, and engagement qualities of a two-year honors program student." I was also granted the opportunity to present my Ethics presentation on Body Identity Integrity Disorder (BIID) along with other bright students from other Honors colleges. I was also able to support my Honors friends by attending their story and poetry readings, presentations on the Venezuela crisis, and Water Problems and Solutions in the Ivory Coast (Africa). 

I would like to give a big thank you to my mentor and Honors program coordinator, Bobby Hom, for supporting me and encouraging me to apply for the Mary Jo Henderson scholarship; I am eternally grateful to receive such a special recognition and accolade which further helped me pursue my dream of studying abroad in Japan with Santa Fe!

Orlando - Islands of Adventure 3/31-4/2/16

The Southern Regional Honors Council was the 44th annual conference hosted by University of West Florida and the Kugelman Honors Program. It was held at the DoubleTree Hilton at the entrance of Universal Studios. I was so grateful to attend this year's conference because of the interesting presentations I was able to listen to and the fact that its theme was Harry Potter (and my Honors friends are also Harry Potter nerds) AND our first day was to attend Islands of Adventure for free! It was exciting how we were all sorted into a Howgarts' house at random. I actually managed to get my house which is Slytherin. From that point, we were expected to earn points for attending presentations, engaging in panel discussions, and presenting our own work; the SRHC Executive Committee or session moderators were likewise expected to keep track of each house's points.

One of the most memorable sessions that contributed to my love for Social and Clinical Psychology was a powerpoint presentation on the placebo effect as a product of classical conditioning and even mental and biological-altered brain neurology. The presenter talked about how people are actively manipulating their memory unconsciously, the bystander effect and diffusion of responsibility leading to conformity and how humans possess the ability to act in accordance to their mindset.

Tampa, FL 11/9-13/16

"When you attend the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS), you join one of the largest communities of underrepresented minorities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Students attend this conference to present their research, explore graduate schools, and network. Research faculty and program directors play an essential role in mentoring students and strategies for facilitating student success."

Catch SF2UF at ABRCMS 2017 in Phoenix, AZ!

Orlando (University of Central Florida), FL 10/29/16

Several Honors students and I entered the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl held at the University of Central Florida for the first time in Santa Fe history. At this competition, we competed with teams from universities in and out of Florida. The goal was to defend our moral assessment of 12 different case studies addressing very complex, modern ethical issues from a wide range of topics in business, professional, social, and political affairs. We had to not only present an effective argument relying on memory and absolute understanding of the case, we also had to effectively respond to the opposing team as well as the panel of expert judges, all under a certain amount of time.

Gainesville, FL 8/18/16

It was my job to serve as a role model as well as a source of support and information for new first-year Honors students. First-year Honors students are required to go through a treasure hunt game while the orientation leaders were the guides and mediators—we led small groups, provided them the information they needed after every task, and made sure they felt welcome the Honors program and Santa Fe College.

Gainesville, FL 2/19-21/16

For the annual Florida Collegiate Honors Council conference, I had the privilege of being a part of its student-based committee with a handful of other Honors students as well as Honors students from College of Central Florida. We discussed which members would be in charge of monitoring rooms for various presentations by rotating shifts every day, possible icebreakers such as discussing the conference’s theme “Exploration of the Good Life” amongst one another during dinner time, and other benefits that encourage leadership and friendship.

I also had the opportunity to present my honors statistics final project, “Sleep and its Effect on Test Scores” to students and professors from different honors colleges/programs in the state of Florida. Another responsibility of mine was being one of eleven docents of Gainesville’s Harn Museum. Our duty was to stand by a selected art piece under the Good Life exhibit and encourage our visitors to connect and even explore the art piece as an approach to defining the “Good Life.”

St. Augustine, FL 11/13/15

Click the picture to be redirected to my blog post about my trip!