Here is information about the seven Ohio Wesleyan students traveling in India, including their backgrounds and aspirations:
SHANNON DEAN is a first-year student and technical theatre major from Princeton, N.J. “I want to be well-rounded and open minded, and to do that I must taste the world in spoonfuls, at every possible chance. … I must try to understand the differences and similarities between people as often as I possibly can, seeing the world through their eyes. If theatre is about nothing else, it is about putting yourself in someone else’s shoes for a while and seeing what the world looks like from their point of view.”
BRENDA GABLE is a first-year student and international studies, Spanish, and pre-professional medicine major from Powell, Ohio. “After I graduate I plan on going to medical school, and possibly get my master’s in international affairs. I hope to combine my interests with medicine and global issues and work in impoverished countries, or countries that are going through major political reform. … This will shape my OWU experience because it will expand my thinking and make me a better-rounded individual.”
ANNA JONES is a first-year student and psychology major from Delaware, Ohio. “I have a particular interest in the concept of nonviolent protest and the opportunity to study that topic in the country of its origin seems like a once in a lifetime experience. I have studied Mahatma Gandhi’s and Martin Luther King Jr.’s methods of nonviolence separately and look forward to being able to compare their strategies and examine Gandhi’s influence on King.”
ALECIA MITCHELL is a junior and early childhood education major from Delaware, Ohio. “Growing up I cultivated an interest in educating myself on teaching in a third world country. I knew that this is what I wanted to do, to help children of the less fortunate who wanted to be educated but didn’t have the opportunity. So I took charge of my life. … Teaching in Africa saved who I was and who I wanted to be. … This experience going to India would definitely be life changing, like my Arica trip this past summer.”
EMILY PORTER is a senior and international studies and politics and government major from Paris, Ky. “In order for that true seed of knowledge to begin growing, it must first take root in personal experience. … Gandhi himself knew the importance of this. If we are to change the world, we need to recognize one another as fundamentally human, the same living, breathing creature. … This trip would allow me to continue to learn in a way that leaves a true impact on the individual.”
MOLLY RICE is a junior and sociology/anthropology and religion major from Brentwood, Tenn. “When I was applying to college, I was looking for a school that would allow me to flourish as a vocal leader and pioneer. I wanted to be surrounded by intelligent and passionate peers. Ohio Wesleyan is the total package. Being accepted into this program would allow me to meet my goals and give me a launching pad for my post-graduate endeavors.”
KELSEY ULLOM is a sophomore and international studies major from Delaware, Ohio. “My goal as an Ohio Wesleyan student is to take in as much of the world as I can in my years here and beyond, learn as much as I can in as many ways as possible, and do the most good alongside my fellow OWU community and the world. This program, to me, is the epitome of all of these goals collectively. It will challenge me, it will enrich me, and it will help me to ultimately do the most good as a student of Gandhi’s teachings.”
