One more plug for a friend. My co-year at Maastricht (UWC Netherlands) is working on a project against human trafficking. He and some friends will be walking from Maastricht, through Belgium, to Luxembourg City in an effort to raise awareness and funds to combat trafficking. He's asked for some help to spread the word and possibly raise donations. Please help him out and support this great cause:
https://www.facebook.com/WalkForTheirLives
Monday, February 3, 2014
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Support Systems
Just a quick message to encourage anyone who believes in the UWC movement to support us. Shelby Davis (our wonderful sponsor) has offered to match the donations raised in 2014 up to one million dollars! The donations will be used to fund scholarships, the new agro-ecology research station, student initiatives, and other projects. Our mission is to "make education a force to unite people, nations, and cultures for peace and a sustainable future". Help us make a difference:
https://www.uwc-usa.org/page.cfm?p=749#agrostation
https://www.uwc-usa.org/page.cfm?p=749#agrostation
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
On the Horizon
Hi everyone, this blog is going to be a little different. Instead of telling you about an experience, I'd like to ask all of you for a bit of help.
As this is my last semester, I've been applying to universities and thinking a lot of about my future. I'm interested in studying International Relations, and hoping to work in a position that will allow me to make a difference in this world (yes, I understand that phrase is grossly overused, nonetheless, it describes my goal), be it policy-making, diplomacy, security, environmental work, government, NGOs, NPOs, international development, you name it. I've recently spoken with some acquaintances who've described their respective careers, very different but both totally plausible with my path as I currently envision it. Through these conversations I have come to realize just how important a summer internship would be- to gain experience and to learn what it really means to work in any of the aforementioned areas.
Here's where you all come in. Though I've been considering internships individually, UWC has taught me that connections can be quite beneficial. So I'm asking anyone who reads my blog for any ideas or suggestions or connections to any summer internships. Though I will only be a high school graduate, know that I will be committed and engaged in any opportunity I might find myself, that I will strive for success, learn quickly and eagerly, and dedicate myself wholeheartedly to any endeavor. I hope to find a position that will be both educational for me as well as a task through which I can feel mentally stimulated and challenged.
So if you're looking for some help this summer, or know of anyone who might be, or just have any suggestions, please comment below or email me (jnebrat95@gmail.com). Thank you!
As this is my last semester, I've been applying to universities and thinking a lot of about my future. I'm interested in studying International Relations, and hoping to work in a position that will allow me to make a difference in this world (yes, I understand that phrase is grossly overused, nonetheless, it describes my goal), be it policy-making, diplomacy, security, environmental work, government, NGOs, NPOs, international development, you name it. I've recently spoken with some acquaintances who've described their respective careers, very different but both totally plausible with my path as I currently envision it. Through these conversations I have come to realize just how important a summer internship would be- to gain experience and to learn what it really means to work in any of the aforementioned areas.
Here's where you all come in. Though I've been considering internships individually, UWC has taught me that connections can be quite beneficial. So I'm asking anyone who reads my blog for any ideas or suggestions or connections to any summer internships. Though I will only be a high school graduate, know that I will be committed and engaged in any opportunity I might find myself, that I will strive for success, learn quickly and eagerly, and dedicate myself wholeheartedly to any endeavor. I hope to find a position that will be both educational for me as well as a task through which I can feel mentally stimulated and challenged.
So if you're looking for some help this summer, or know of anyone who might be, or just have any suggestions, please comment below or email me (jnebrat95@gmail.com). Thank you!
Sunday, January 5, 2014
The Home Stretch
When I came to UWC, there was absolutely no doubt in mind that I was making the right choice. I knew that this was where I wanted to be, studying with 200 other kids from around the world, hoping to one day make a difference. I remember my very first glimpse of the castle, and quite honestly, I think a part of me still thought the whole concept of UWC was a dream until we rounded that corner and saw the red turret dominating the side of the mountain. "Montezuma": a tiny town in the middle of New Mexico, a place where the world comes together.
Yesterday I rounded the corner again, drove past the "Montezuma" sign, watched the red and gray become bigger, this time nestled comfortably into the mountains, a familiarity that can only be associated with a place called "home". But this trip was different. Now I was returning for my final semester at UWC.
I cannot possibly express how wonderful my time here has been. I have made lifelong friends. I have grown as an individual, through studying, through attempting and loving new experiences, through opening my mind to a world of possibilities. And while I know that my UWC experience will only grow from this point onward- even beyond the campus gates- I cannot help but feel sad knowing that our time here is ticking down.
It seems like everywhere we turn my co-years and I are checking off items on a list. Orientation? Check. Buddy Dance? Check. Third Semester? Check. Though we have five months remaining, I know how quickly they will pass, that very soon it we will be we who are standing on a stage, waving diplomas, saying good-byes.
In the next few months my classmates and I will be receiving letters that will determine where we will be in the coming years. I cannot wait to see where my friends will end up; as talented and brilliant as they all are, I know everyone will go on to live grand new adventures, be they university, gap years, or whatever else.
And I am excited for myself as well. Though I do not yet know where I'll find myself come August, I do know that I have been prepared for anything that may come my way. I hope to meet the future with excitement and with the energy to continue living my dreams.
But for now, I have five more months to make the most of. Though there will be much working and studying and applying myself, I also look forward to making new friends, to making memories, to trying new things. This is the homestretch, the last leg of a journey that I will remember for the rest of my life. On what will I look back and smile?
Let Fourth Semester begin. Bring it on.
 |
| My first glimpse of UWC-USA- August 2012 |
I cannot possibly express how wonderful my time here has been. I have made lifelong friends. I have grown as an individual, through studying, through attempting and loving new experiences, through opening my mind to a world of possibilities. And while I know that my UWC experience will only grow from this point onward- even beyond the campus gates- I cannot help but feel sad knowing that our time here is ticking down.
It seems like everywhere we turn my co-years and I are checking off items on a list. Orientation? Check. Buddy Dance? Check. Third Semester? Check. Though we have five months remaining, I know how quickly they will pass, that very soon it we will be we who are standing on a stage, waving diplomas, saying good-byes.
In the next few months my classmates and I will be receiving letters that will determine where we will be in the coming years. I cannot wait to see where my friends will end up; as talented and brilliant as they all are, I know everyone will go on to live grand new adventures, be they university, gap years, or whatever else.
And I am excited for myself as well. Though I do not yet know where I'll find myself come August, I do know that I have been prepared for anything that may come my way. I hope to meet the future with excitement and with the energy to continue living my dreams.
But for now, I have five more months to make the most of. Though there will be much working and studying and applying myself, I also look forward to making new friends, to making memories, to trying new things. This is the homestretch, the last leg of a journey that I will remember for the rest of my life. On what will I look back and smile?
Let Fourth Semester begin. Bring it on.
Friday, December 27, 2013
Saturday, December 7, 2013
In Memory
In a place that is usually filled with laughter, announcements, cultural shows, and movie nights, there was a single canvas sitting upright on a chair, in the middle of the stage. Lit by a single lamp, the outline of a great man. The rest of the room just barely lit, a semi-circle of chairs.
"Today we are sad for the death of a great man, a hero of our time. But we also celebrate his life, and all of the lives that he touched."
It surprised me how emotional the following hour turned out to be. I'd expected a few words by our president, perhaps a song, a moment of silence. But, as always at UWC, it is the people, the personal experiences, that make the moment.
We all stood for the South African national anthem. I admit I was surprised by the joy of the song. The anthem of my country calls for solidarity, unity, greatness. The words I heard this evening, in a language I did not understand, called for a simple celebration of life. Perhaps the words change the song, and perhaps the dimness of the room and solemnity of my fellow classmates exacerbated the moment, but nevertheless it was powerful.
Then a song by our African Chorus. Introduced by the story of the same song being sung a world away for the first time. Written for Mandela, and performed, against all social constrains, by a group of both black and white individuals. Performed years later in a small school in New Mexico, celebrating the life of their honorary president.
And then personal accounts. There was one from one of our students who represents South Africa, one from one of our teachers, one from a Swazi student, and another from a teacher. The short account given by J, one of our English teachers stuck with me. He spoke of growing up in Lesotho, a little boy of six who saw the world very simply. He told of growing up and learning that the world he'd thought he lived in, simple and peaceful, was not at all true. He described his friends and caretakers, who'd loved him though he wasn't one of them. And he recounted attending a concert with his black friends, who at the end had stood with a fist raised high in the air. Later he'd seen hundreds and hundreds of fists raised for Mandela. J spoke simply and earnestly and brought tears to everyone's eyes.
It is not that any of my classmates or teachers spoke of anything unusual. In fact, I don't think anyone in the room had even met Nelson Mandela. Yet being reminded of the difficulties this one man had faced, the number of lives he'd touched, how he lived his life knowing what was right and maintained his vision of peace, it was difficult not to feel a deep sense of respect. My peers and I can only dream of living such a life.
After the auditorium, the entire group was led up to our Mandela Peace Garden, guided by a singing African Chorus. The path was lined with candles, as was the entire garden. After a few more words from our president, and some chanting from one of our teachers, we closed the commemoration.
I suppose it wasn't the ceremony that made the time so significant, but rather the notions. Here we were, a bunch of kids hoping to change the world, celebrating a man who had done just that. It was inspiring, and motivating, and I hope that one day we too can serve the world. I felt honored to be present at this celebration, and lucky to be a part of the UWC mission.
"Today we are sad for the death of a great man, a hero of our time. But we also celebrate his life, and all of the lives that he touched."
It surprised me how emotional the following hour turned out to be. I'd expected a few words by our president, perhaps a song, a moment of silence. But, as always at UWC, it is the people, the personal experiences, that make the moment.
We all stood for the South African national anthem. I admit I was surprised by the joy of the song. The anthem of my country calls for solidarity, unity, greatness. The words I heard this evening, in a language I did not understand, called for a simple celebration of life. Perhaps the words change the song, and perhaps the dimness of the room and solemnity of my fellow classmates exacerbated the moment, but nevertheless it was powerful.
Then a song by our African Chorus. Introduced by the story of the same song being sung a world away for the first time. Written for Mandela, and performed, against all social constrains, by a group of both black and white individuals. Performed years later in a small school in New Mexico, celebrating the life of their honorary president.
And then personal accounts. There was one from one of our students who represents South Africa, one from one of our teachers, one from a Swazi student, and another from a teacher. The short account given by J, one of our English teachers stuck with me. He spoke of growing up in Lesotho, a little boy of six who saw the world very simply. He told of growing up and learning that the world he'd thought he lived in, simple and peaceful, was not at all true. He described his friends and caretakers, who'd loved him though he wasn't one of them. And he recounted attending a concert with his black friends, who at the end had stood with a fist raised high in the air. Later he'd seen hundreds and hundreds of fists raised for Mandela. J spoke simply and earnestly and brought tears to everyone's eyes.
It is not that any of my classmates or teachers spoke of anything unusual. In fact, I don't think anyone in the room had even met Nelson Mandela. Yet being reminded of the difficulties this one man had faced, the number of lives he'd touched, how he lived his life knowing what was right and maintained his vision of peace, it was difficult not to feel a deep sense of respect. My peers and I can only dream of living such a life.
After the auditorium, the entire group was led up to our Mandela Peace Garden, guided by a singing African Chorus. The path was lined with candles, as was the entire garden. After a few more words from our president, and some chanting from one of our teachers, we closed the commemoration.
I suppose it wasn't the ceremony that made the time so significant, but rather the notions. Here we were, a bunch of kids hoping to change the world, celebrating a man who had done just that. It was inspiring, and motivating, and I hope that one day we too can serve the world. I felt honored to be present at this celebration, and lucky to be a part of the UWC mission.
Friday, November 8, 2013
Disclaimer
I was recently made aware that my blog does not exactly reflect the experience of every other UWCer out there. At least two different individuals informed me that coming here was not quite what they'd expected after having read my blog.
Therefore, this is my Official Disclaimer. If you are a potential UWC student, please know that I can only report my own experience; I cannot generalize the entire experience as any other individual might encounter it. And for any current UWCer, especially here at USA, I apologize if you feel I have not accurately illustrated what you consider this experience to be.
But I think this is part of the beauty of UWC. We all come from different backgrounds, different cultures, and different ways of thinking. And we all go through the IB and CAS, but what each of us takes from this adventure is very unique and often very personal.
Today I and three of my co-years sat through a CAS interview, a discussion about the challenges and lessons we've encountered through our leadership CASs. It was extremely interesting. On the one hand, we all admitted to facing some struggles working cohesively with our respective groups, and even more so with the people in the community (particularly middle school kids... let's jut admit that it's an awkward phase in everyone's life), but each of us also had individual stories to relate and had learned and come across various ideas. I was reminded how impressive it is that, being given similar experiences, we all take something different away.
On the greater scale, our lives are just like this. Every person we meet, every place we visit, or even something like every radio commercial that we hear, each changes our life in some small way and creates an infinity of incidents that expand into millions and millions of possible lives. It's difficult to wrap your head around, and beautiful, and incredible.
Alright, alright, I won't get too philosophical or profound; it's just a thought that's been on my mind lately.
In other news, UWC continues to be ever surprising. Last weekend we had two performance events: Halloween Cafe (an informal set performed by any willing students) and our first Castle Concert of the year. Both were full of incredibly talented performers; I never fail to be completely blown away by my peers. We also had some hilarious pass-down performances in the cafe (my personal favorite was the Backstreet Boys). One of the best elements of these performance situations is the atmosphere- there is so much love and support and joy surrounding the talent and creativity demonstrated, and it makes the community feeling so much nicer.
If you'd like to see the Castle Concert, click HERE. It's quite good.
Other than that, we're forging on with Third Semester. There's still a lot of work and life is busy as always, but as the semester moves forward, I'm definitely looking forward to the Thanksgiving and the winter holidays, and hopefully some snow before that. Fingers crossed!
Therefore, this is my Official Disclaimer. If you are a potential UWC student, please know that I can only report my own experience; I cannot generalize the entire experience as any other individual might encounter it. And for any current UWCer, especially here at USA, I apologize if you feel I have not accurately illustrated what you consider this experience to be.
But I think this is part of the beauty of UWC. We all come from different backgrounds, different cultures, and different ways of thinking. And we all go through the IB and CAS, but what each of us takes from this adventure is very unique and often very personal.
Today I and three of my co-years sat through a CAS interview, a discussion about the challenges and lessons we've encountered through our leadership CASs. It was extremely interesting. On the one hand, we all admitted to facing some struggles working cohesively with our respective groups, and even more so with the people in the community (particularly middle school kids... let's jut admit that it's an awkward phase in everyone's life), but each of us also had individual stories to relate and had learned and come across various ideas. I was reminded how impressive it is that, being given similar experiences, we all take something different away.
On the greater scale, our lives are just like this. Every person we meet, every place we visit, or even something like every radio commercial that we hear, each changes our life in some small way and creates an infinity of incidents that expand into millions and millions of possible lives. It's difficult to wrap your head around, and beautiful, and incredible.
Alright, alright, I won't get too philosophical or profound; it's just a thought that's been on my mind lately.
In other news, UWC continues to be ever surprising. Last weekend we had two performance events: Halloween Cafe (an informal set performed by any willing students) and our first Castle Concert of the year. Both were full of incredibly talented performers; I never fail to be completely blown away by my peers. We also had some hilarious pass-down performances in the cafe (my personal favorite was the Backstreet Boys). One of the best elements of these performance situations is the atmosphere- there is so much love and support and joy surrounding the talent and creativity demonstrated, and it makes the community feeling so much nicer.
If you'd like to see the Castle Concert, click HERE. It's quite good.
Other than that, we're forging on with Third Semester. There's still a lot of work and life is busy as always, but as the semester moves forward, I'm definitely looking forward to the Thanksgiving and the winter holidays, and hopefully some snow before that. Fingers crossed!
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