Prompt: A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community, or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you. (250-500 Words)
Around Every Corner
By: Katelyn Bertolet
_______An accomplished actor by the name of Max von Sydow once said, "All my life I've been looking for diversity." What Mr. von Sydow and so many other people don't realize is that diversity is all around us, and, if you're constantly looking, chances are you'll miss it. This lesson is just one of the many I learned this past summer while attending the Global Young Leaders Conference (GYLC) sponsored by the Congressional Youth Leadership Council. Attending this conference were students from all over the world, representing over 100 different countries. We began our journey together in Washington D.C., continued the adventure in New York City, and then, for a few of us, we finished the experience in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the United States, Los Angeles.
_______Before going to this conference and meeting all of these absolutely amazing people, I had no clue to what degree diversity surrounded me. However, once I was given the opportunity to see my world through others' eyes, diversity seemed to be around every corner, literally. For example, in America, most people don't see someone's skin color as something that sets them apart anymore. When some friends from GYLC asked about our school system and how well it was integrated with races and ethnicities though, I felt as if a veil was pulled away and I was suddenly able to see how many different people my school has enrolled. Not only do we have students from France, the Dominican Republic, and a couple countries in Africa, we also have students from right here in the United States that are all different because of the way they dress, act, and the activities in which they become involved. Having always loved the sciences, I often found myself thinking how interesting it was that even though all human DNA is so similar, the smallest, quirkiest attribute of each personality was the one that set us apart from everyone else. All of us have something about ourselves, whether it is a weird food we like to eat or an accent or even the color of our skin, which makes us different, unique, and diverse from the rest of the human population.
_______Learning this lesson cost me approximately $6,000 and a 15 day trip all across America during my last official summer, but I am completely positive it was worth every penny and every ounce of stress it caused me about traveling alone. However, for those that don't have the money or that kind of high stress tolerance, I want to be the witness they need to help them notice the diversity all around them. We are blessed to live in America, also known as "the melting pot" for cultures and customs. Although, we'll never truly understand the blessing unless we are able to first see the cultures separately from each other and gain an appreciation for all.
Word Count: 489
Around Every Corner
By: Katelyn Bertolet
_______An accomplished actor by the name of Max von Sydow once said, "All my life I've been looking for diversity." What Mr. von Sydow and so many other people don't realize is that diversity is all around us, and, if you're constantly looking, chances are you'll miss it. This lesson is just one of the many I learned this past summer while attending the Global Young Leaders Conference (GYLC) sponsored by the Congressional Youth Leadership Council. Attending this conference were students from all over the world, representing over 100 different countries. We began our journey together in Washington D.C., continued the adventure in New York City, and then, for a few of us, we finished the experience in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the United States, Los Angeles.
_______Before going to this conference and meeting all of these absolutely amazing people, I had no clue to what degree diversity surrounded me. However, once I was given the opportunity to see my world through others' eyes, diversity seemed to be around every corner, literally. For example, in America, most people don't see someone's skin color as something that sets them apart anymore. When some friends from GYLC asked about our school system and how well it was integrated with races and ethnicities though, I felt as if a veil was pulled away and I was suddenly able to see how many different people my school has enrolled. Not only do we have students from France, the Dominican Republic, and a couple countries in Africa, we also have students from right here in the United States that are all different because of the way they dress, act, and the activities in which they become involved. Having always loved the sciences, I often found myself thinking how interesting it was that even though all human DNA is so similar, the smallest, quirkiest attribute of each personality was the one that set us apart from everyone else. All of us have something about ourselves, whether it is a weird food we like to eat or an accent or even the color of our skin, which makes us different, unique, and diverse from the rest of the human population.
_______Learning this lesson cost me approximately $6,000 and a 15 day trip all across America during my last official summer, but I am completely positive it was worth every penny and every ounce of stress it caused me about traveling alone. However, for those that don't have the money or that kind of high stress tolerance, I want to be the witness they need to help them notice the diversity all around them. We are blessed to live in America, also known as "the melting pot" for cultures and customs. Although, we'll never truly understand the blessing unless we are able to first see the cultures separately from each other and gain an appreciation for all.
Word Count: 489