Tour Guide Spotlight: Annie Zhang ’13

Annie Zhang ’13

Hometown: Canton, MI

Major(s)/Minor(s): Economics/Philosophy

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus? Washington and Lee Student Consulting, Honor Advocate for Executive Committee, University Lectures Committee, General Development Initiative, Model United Nations, Economic research with professor, work/study in Office of Special Programs, Student Recruitment Committee

How are you involved in the Lexington community? Through the Poverty Fieldwork Course, my placement was with a local lawyer in town who represents court appointed cases as part of his workload. My experience observing cases and various steps of the process has helped me develop an interest in the implications of poverty on the legal system. I have taken the initiative to speak with the director of the Department of Social Services located in Lexington to pursue a project that would better address the needs of the impoverished part of the community. In addition, through my experience in Washington and Lee Student Consulting, we often work with several local clients to improve their business and contribute to the local economy.

Favorite weekend activity? Get a full ten hours of sleep and enjoy the day with friends. There’s nothing that feels better than relaxing after a hard week of classes, meetings, and various extracurricular activities. The slow pace of the weekend is especially soothing. I also enjoy exploring the town and during spring term, go tubing and hiking.

Favorite thing about Lexington? I never expected to go to college in a rural area but Lexington is the best small town to live in because of its quaint appeal mixed with the active university. I love walking down the streets of Lexington and exploring the many shops. Before I graduate, I want to take a tour of the town by horse carriage that is offered on the weekends. Lexington is full of history and legends that is open to exploration.

What’s your favorite W&L memory? I frequently think of how fortunate I am to be at Washington and Lee because of the many great people I have met and the limitless opportunities that are available. It is really difficult to select a favorite W&L memory but orientation week is definitely a favorite. There is constant excitement and each time, you realize just how much you have become attached to the company and the environment.

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member? One of the reasons why I selected W&L is due to small class sizes and strong professor-student relationships. Although there are many favorable encounters, my very first experience was with my Economics 101 professor. During spring term of my freshmen year, I was applying to various internships in the hopes of finding something substantial to do that summer. I decided to email some of my professor sand express my interest in the topic that I had taken with them. I also emphasized that I wanted to apply what I had learned by helping them with any research projects that they are working on. My economics professor asked me to meet with him and during our conversation, we developed a research project that reflected my interests. He has spent so much time patiently teaching me the intricacies of economics research and topics that I have never encountered before.

The “Souper Bowl”

The Weekend Backpack Program through W&L Campus Kitchens helps many in the community

This Sunday the Campus Kitchens at W&L will be hosting a “Souper Bowl” to benefit its Weekend Backpack Program. The event, which will feature soups from many Lexington restaurants, will help to fund the program which provides backpacks filled with healthy and nutritious food to local children for the weekend. This is just one aspect of the extensive CKWL initiative which is part of the Shepherd Poverty Program. You can learn more about campus kitchens here. Also, check out the Souper Bowl press release here!

Tour Guide Spotlight: Natasha Lerner ’13

Natasha Lerner ’13

Hometown: New York, NY

Major(s)/Minor(s): Global Politics/Womens and Gender Studies & Poverty

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus? Chi Omega, Student Recruitment Committee, Hillel. I also do Generals Development Initiative, University Big Program, and First Year Orientation Committee.

How are you involved in the Lexington community? I volunteer at Project Horizon, and last year I volunteered at the Lexington Office on Youth.

What are some of your other hobbies/interests? Travel, ballet, photography, sky diving, crossword puzzles, the New York Yankees

Favorite weekend activity? Big group dinners with my friends or sorority family.

Favorite thing about Lexington?  The history, tradition, and charm of the town. It is just the right size and has just what a college town needs.

What’s your favorite W&L memory? Signing the honor system orientation week freshmen year. Also, I love giving tours. It was a position I knew I wanted when I was a senior in high school going on college visits and I think it has really affected how I think about the school and my place in it.

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member? Professor Dickovick, who taught me Global Politics is going to be my advisor, really encourages me as both a student and a person. I always feel more confident in my opinions, goals, and potential after talking to him. Even when he was on sabbatical this year he still made time to get lunch with me one day to catch up on how things were going.

 

Tour Guide Spotlight: Ali Greenberg ’13

Ali Greenberg ’13

Hometown: Blacksburg, VA

Major(s)/Minor(s): Global Politics & Spanish/Poverty & Latin American and Caribbean Studies

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus? Panhellenic, Admissions Intern, Mock Convention Facilities Chair and Trustee, Volunteer Venture Trip Leader, Kappa Alpha Theta, R.E. Lee Summer Scholar, Research Assistant

What are some of your other hobbies/interests? Traveling and great food with friends.

Favorite weekend activity? Absurdly lazy Sunday’s, brunch included.

Favorite thing about Lexington? Since I live in town and work at a restaurant in town, I truly have become a townie and a part of the community. When I walk my dog to the Colonnade in the morning, I often pass Professors, fellow students, coworkers of mine, or shop owners that I know. Since my family now lives out of the country it is great to be able to call a town like Lexington my home.

What’s your favorite W&L memory? Spring term in Ghana with Koffi and Kwasi, known here as Prof. Dickovick and Prof. Blunch, and Monday night (wing night) office hours at Macado’s.

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member? Anytime I get to hang out with Prof. Dickovick, whether it be during one of the four classes I have taken with him, Spring Term in Ghana, our research work this summer, or helping with his publications this term. Having an advisor who is so invested in each one of his students is an incredible thing and I know that his door is always open if I need, or simply want, to talk about anything.

 

Tour Guide Spotlight: Charlotte Collins ’14

Charlotte Collins ’14

Hometown: Dallas, TX

Major(s)/Minor(s): Psychology (Pre-Med)/Poverty

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus? 
Active Minds, LIFE, Bonner Leaders Program, Big Brother Big Sister, SRC, Peer Counselor, Kappa Kappa Gamma

How are you involved in the Lexington community? 
Because of the Bonner Leaders Program, I am very involved in the Lexington community. I have a little sister in Buena Vista through Big Brother Big Sister. I am a Prevention Services intern at Rockbridge Area Community Services, working with the high school and middle schools in the area. I also mentor middle school students at Rockbridge Middle School on Thursdays through the GirlTalk program.

What are some of your other hobbies/interests? 
Reading, photography, music, running, and piano

Favorite weekend activity? Sunday brunch with friends

Favorite thing about Lexington? The size!

What’s your favorite W&L memory? 
Parents weekend! My dad is an alumni – it was so much fun having him on campus with me!

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member? 
The best encounter I have had with a faculty or staff member was with Dr. Jack – my freshman year biology teacher. He helped with my transition into college life and classes so much and really inspired me to keep pursuing my dream of going pre-med. I’ve never had such a supportive, genuine teacher.

 

Tour Guide Spotlight: Camie Carlock ’13

Camie Carlock ’13

Hometown: Dallas, TX

Major(s)/Minor(s): Politics/Art History & Poverty and Human Capability

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus? I’m Marshal for Kappa Kappa Gamma and a member of the Standards Committee, a Fundraising Chair and Trustee for Mock Convention, Peer Counselor, work study in the Admissions Office, RUF, training for a half marathon with friends.

How are you involved in the Lexington community? I’m on the Higher Education Ministry at RE Lee Memorial Church, and I currently volunteer two hours each week at Woods Creek Montessori School. I hope to become more involved this fall through more volunteer work in general.

What are some of your other hobbies/interests? Traveling, running, cooking (learning how to), painting, learning how to be a better friend/person in general, making other people happy!

Favorite weekend activity? Dressing up for themed parties, running the Chessie Trail, relaxing with friends.

Favorite thing about Lexington? It is literally the postcard for quaint, picturesque small town America, and it is so safe and cozy nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

What’s your favorite W&L memory? Tubing down the Maury River with my best friends last Spring Term.

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member? Professor Beckley, head of the Shepherd Poverty Program, is hands down my favorite professor. Last year, I had left the major/minor declaration form in his office, and I stopped by to pick it up. Professor Beckley chatted about my applying for the Shepherd Internship that summer, and then he asked that daunting question, “What do you want to do with your life?” I explained how I’m majoring in Politics and might want to attend Law School, but I also admitted that Law School is my cop-out so it sounds like I have a post-graduation plan. He informed me of Public Policy programs and even dual degree programs with law schools and how that might be the direction I want to steer myself. I was SO relieved to know Politics really is the right major for me, especially hearing it from a faculty member outside of the department. And the best part is, I can incorporate my knowledge and experiences with the Shepherd Poverty Program so that I can continue to do what I love: helping others.

 

Tour Guide Spotlight: Elizabeth Bucklee ’13

Elizabeth Bucklee ’13

Hometown: Princeton, NJ

Major(s)/Minor(s): American History

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus? Women’s Lacrosse, Mock Con Social Committee, Vice President Public Relations Kappa Alpha Theta, Student Advisory Committe

How are you involved in the Lexington community? Volunteer work with my Lacrosse team

What are some of your other hobbies/interests? Community Service

Favorite weekend activity? Going for drives with my best friends

Favorite thing about Lexington? How gorgeous it is during the fall and spring. The horse carriage rides that go by as you walk to class.

What’s your favorite W&L memory? Winning ODACs my freshman year. One night when my friends and I didn’t go out and we just stayed at Theta and watched a movie. Tubing last spring.

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member? Going over to Professor Beckley’s home to have dinner with his wife and the rest of my Poverty 103 class.

 

Tour Guide Spotlight: Danielle Breidung ’13

Danielle Breidung ’13

 

Hometown: Waunakee, WI

Major(s)/Minor(s): Sociology/Environmental Studies & Poverty

What clubs/activities are you involved in on campus?
English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), the Campus Kitchen (CKP), the Bonner Leaders Program, Outing Club, and the Generals Development Initiative (GDI)

How are you involved in the Lexington community?
I am a Bonner Leader, so my service takes me to diverse locations and organizations on a daily basis. Currently, I am teaching Spanish at Fairfield Elementary twice a week, tutoring Spanish-speaking children at Maury River Middle School also twice a week, serving as a mentor for Maury River’s Girl Talk program, and volunteering at Project Horizon. I enjoy doing shifts at Campus Kitchen on Sundays.

What are some of your other hobbies/interests?
I enjoy traveling, meeting new people, reading, cooking, and spending time with friends. Some of my interests include women’s rights in the developing world, domestic and international non-profit work, and eco-tourism’s positive and negative impact on traditional populations.

Favorite weekend activity? Walking, hiking, and/or biking on one of the local trails

Favorite thing about Lexington? It is a small, quaint community where one can truly make a difference, make long-lasting connections, and feel safe regardless of the time of day, not to mention the beautiful natural landscape, i.e. MOUNTAINS!

What’s your favorite W&L memory?
Last year, at the end of spring term, one of my best friends at W&L and I were sitting on the colonnade while we should have been packing and cleaning our rooms. It was about 12 a.m., and we were simply enjoying the peace and quiet, the stars overhead, and the amazing view from the steps of Washington Hall while reminiscing about all of the fun things that had occurred during our first-years in Lexington.

What’s the best encounter you’ve had with a faculty or staff member?
Last fall two other W&L students and I were studying abroad and conducting research in the Amazon. While there we had the opportunity to travel with three W&L faculty to Barcelos to gain familiarity with the communities in which we would be working throughout our experience in Brazil. This encounter was remarkable due to the fact that, there we were in the middle of the Amazon, and despite all of our differences, the one thing that brought us all together – professors and students alike- apart from being affiliated with W&L, was a passion for learning more about social and environmental justice in one of the world’s most breathtaking locations.

 

Volunteer Venture Charleston

Last week I had the privilege of spending my week with 15 first years and 4 other upper classmen in beautiful Charleston, West Virginia.  We spent our time volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, hearing from representatives of the “Friends of Coal” and “Friends of Mountains” organizations, and most importantly, making new friends before orientation week even started.  The pre-orientation trips are wonderful opportunities for freshmen and I am so glad I got to lead one this year.

First Day Back

Despite a very relaxing three week break, I am SO glad to be back on campus! I really do miss W&L more and more each time I am away from this wonderful place. The first day of a new term is always so exciting with new classes, new professors, new books, and a new weekly schedule. I love seeing who I will cross paths with on campus as I walk to and from classes “on the hill.” All four of my classes this term are in my major and minors’ departments, making each course especially engaging. I have already had my Economics of Education class and 20th Century Art History class today, and I can’t wait for my Congress and psychology classes tomorrow!

But even as exciting as the first day of Winter Term is, I am already having to think way ahead to this summer. Right now I am working on my application for the Shepherd Poverty Program’s summer internship. The internship is eight weeks long, and you apply to three different sites across the US that were selected by the Shepherd program. Every student that I have talked to who has participated in the summer internship has LOVED it and thinks it was one of the most defining and life-changing experiences of his/her college career. I hope I will get the opportunity to have that same unforgettable experience!