Civil Engagement
The community service project that we had to work on as a class is a very important issue here on campus which is Food Insecurity on campus. Being completely honest it was an issue I didn’t think happens to a lot of students or in every college and by working on this, I learned that it’s a nationwide issue. Once we were given our groups and assignments for the group, I began to do research to start making the flyers. Upon doing research and talking to others, I was in shock when I learned that a couple of my peers are actually struggling and going through this. One thing I would like to develop within this project is to form a Hunger Task Force on-campus to help students. Overall, as a group we all worked well together, we set deadlines when we wanted stuff due and made sure to execute that.
I learned a lot by working on this community service, and it actually motivated me to work harder on my groups work because I want to see better assistance to students who struggle with food insecurity. In one of my classes a peer of mine gave a speech about food insecurity on campus and how it felt to her. She told us about it was hard for to study and focus while on an empty stomach and I would have never known that she was struggling with having food. This experience further proved my belief that you can’t judge someone by how they look and act, I assumed this girl was living her best life on campus, happy, lively but behind that shes really hungry and not receiving the help she should here on campus.
One thing that I would like to develop within this project is forming a Hunger Task Force on-campus to help out students who go through this. The Hunger Task Force would help students by assisting them with applying for the New Jersey Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program which will help them with buying groceries for their dorms. I want to find a way to help this students without them feeling like there's a stigma around them, so they don’t wanna seek out help. Hopefully, Governor Phil Murphy will approve The Hunger Free Campus Act which will establish a grant program to helping campuses battle this issue.
The group that I am in is in charge of making flyers and posters to be seen on campus and as a group we worked well together. The first day we were assigned to be a group, we exchanged numbers and formed a group chat to better communicate with each other. We settled on having one person who would be the public speaker of the group and he executed his job perfectly. He would give us deadlines on when things are due and then as a group we would work together to execute it. If someone had an issue they would just text us in the group chat and one of us would help them out. The group was fun and we also got all the work we needed done.
In conclusion, im hoping that with this project that we will be able to make a difference here on campus to students struggling with Food Insecurity. I want them to not be afraid to ask for help due to stigmas and hopefully by them seeing a pantry made and ran by students for students, they’ll feel comfortable. A Hunger Task Force on campus is something I want to see because then students will have specific people trained to help them on specific issues that they have and the best solution for that problem. Being in this group I made new friends and worked well with my peers to get the work we needed done. I’m glad I was able to be apart of such an important solution to a problem here on campus.
Diversity
I went through the biggest culture shock of my life when I went from middle school in Elizabeth to middle school in Kenilworth, a huge melting pot of blacks and hispanics to a sea of white. Going into the new school I was scared because I have never been around that many white people in my life. I stood in that same school from 6th grade all the way to graduation, and it was an easy task. The diversity in that school was not great at all, I was only 1 of about 7 Hispanics in my graduating class and 1 of 14 people of color. Being a majority white school with students and faculty, racism and discrimination was something you’d witness everyday and had to get use to. We had 1 Biracial teacher in all 6 years I went to school there and only 1 black substitute. At the beginning, I changed myself to fit in and be liked by the white people but then I realized i'm not there to conform to the people, and I embraced my difference to them.
My high school experience with diversity was horrendous, I would go to school and be surrounded by all white people so me and other minorities found ourselves with each other everyday and every chance we had. We were like a smaller version of the Black Panthers and Young Lords, we didn’t have any teachers of color to go to that can relate to how we feel so we only had ourselves. I will never forget being told in class in front of the class that I shouldn't have rights as a Puerto Rican and that I shouldn't even be allowed in America. I was hurt, embarrassed, and outraged that a white boy can say that to me in front of a teacher and for her to just sit there and act like nothing was said and being the only Puerto Rican in that class I felt alone. I never wanted to leave a place so bad, I was also told that going to college would be a whole different experience and boy were they right.
Kean is one of the most diverse places i’ve been to and the experience i’ve been having is amazing. Since my first week i’ve had multiple positive experiences from trying moon cakes to learning about reggae music in communications. Joining all the diverse organizations has led me to gaining friends from all different ethnicities i now have Filipino friends, Asian, African American, European American and Hispanics. The great thing about this diversity is being able to experience multiple cultures which teaches me new things and new ways to handle situations. The overall diverse experience has been a huge change from high school and I love it.
Going to college was one of the biggest decision I could have made because it allowed me to experience different cultures and actual diversity. I went from being discriminated against and dealing with racism to a place where everywhere you go on campus you see a little bit of every culture. I can go to the library and see a black person, white person, and a hispanic all having lunch together which in my high school you'd see white with with white and colored with colored. I love how its very segregated and I haven’t seen anyone be turned away from any event or activity due to their race, sexual preference, or gender. People that haven’t been exposed to different cultures need to go out and experience it because it has a huge impact in your life.