"What I Did This Summer"

Andrew Calhoun

Major: Architecture

Activity: Architecture study abroad trip to Swaziland

"Having spent seven weeks tramping through western Europe this summer on Ohio State's own worthwhile version of the Grand Tour for architecture students, I appreciated the opportunity for the value of international cultural broadening. I searched for a deeper understanding of architecture and its relationship to society by not assuming that ‘we’ have it right and ‘they’ have it wrong. Materially, we certainly have much that others do not, yet I cannot ignore the innovation, ingenuity, and even joy that I see from afar in spite of such difficult trying conditions. I hope to consider the minute and everyday steps that emerge to better life there because, though small, these improvements bring the overwhelming reality of international crises back to a comprehendible human scale. In these moments of relearning, I look to uncover and reflect a hopeful vision of the future of Swaziland."

Jasmine Dorsey

Major: Spanish

Activity: Study Abroad at the University of Guanajuato in Mexico

"This past summer I had the amazing opportunity to travel abroad and experience a different culture first hand while I spent eight weeks studying the cinema, history, and art of Mexico. Initially, adjusting to being away from close friends and family was difficult and something as simple as going to the post office was a major achievement. However, as the weeks passed, I grew to appreciate the challenges of surviving in a different environment as they helped me to grow personally and academically. Though I learned a great deal in the classroom, most of my learning experiences took place at home with my host family who will forever be one of my fondest memories of Mexico. The trip to Guanajuato was my second study abroad experience and the two visits have ignited a passion within me for understanding other people and their perspectives. Nothing is ever quite the same after you have studied abroad."

Allison Gibson

Major: Social Work

Activity: TELR/Digital Union Research on Research Program

"Being selected for the Research on Research (R2) program allowed me to begin a project in which I constructed an online tutorial for creating a safe, effective web site for grieving teens, based on information from existing literature and a focus group with bereavement support providers. By participating in the R2 program, I gained insight on how to apply to the Institutional Review Board (IRB) and to find grants for research; I learned different software programs in multimedia and web design; and the program allowed me to connect to both my peers doing research in other fields as well as a faculty member in my college, Dr. Keith Anderson."

(See Gibson's project.)

Phillip Gustafson

Major: Business Finance, Accounting, and Insurance & Risk Management

Activity: Study abroad at Singapore Management University

"From the minute I landed in Singapore, every moment has been full of new experiences. For the first few weeks, all I did was get settled in Singapore starting with immigration, school, and, most importantly, friends. I have learned a lot by entering into a new culture and traveling to the surrounding areas and experiencing their cultures. I have learned most from the people I have met. The knowledge, experience, and differences that they have shown me have helped me grow and have fun more anything else this summer. These friends have helped me adjust to this new culture and made me comfortable and happy to be here. The school, country, area are also amazing, and I could easily spend hours talking about them, but the most influencing and beneficial part of my summer, my trip, and my learning has been the people I have met and continue to meet. I believe these relationships are where the real growth (both cultural and personal) occurs while studying abroad."

Hudson McFann

Major: Geography

Activity: Research on the "regreening" of Southeast Ohio, particularly in the Wayne National Forest

"I'm researching southeast Ohio's transition from extractive industry to forest re-growth and the roles of local people in this process. For instance, how have they responded and contributed these dramatic changes in their landscape? I am also examining southeast Ohio's history of labor and land-use struggles and the ways in which they have influenced the region's identity and led to the formation of different alliances and antagonisms among private landowners, government, and environmental groups. For example, how has their history of being controlled and exploited as miners in company towns influenced existing attitudes and perceptions of other large entities, including government agencies?"

Vienny Nguyen

Major: Mechanical Engineering

Activity: Co-op at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas

"This summer I worked in the Robotics and Automation division at NASA-JSC. I worked side by side with an amazing team of roboticists in a demanding and exciting work environment. In the process I gained valuable engineering and teamwork skills. The co-op program itself has been very rewarding. It has given me a chance to see many facets of NASA and to work together with engineers and astronauts towards the common mission of space exploration. Being in Houston also gave me the chance to experience big city life--I most enjoyed the ethnic diversity and the variety of food options."

Lilian Perez

Major: Transportation and Logistics

Activity: Internship with the Regional Target Distribution Center (DC) in West Jefferson, Ohio

"This summer was very busy but rewarding. Although this was my second summer interning with the DC, there was still plenty left to learn both professionally and personally. During my internship, I was assigned the project of streamlining the efficiency of the labeling system to allow for increased timely service to our customers. I can proudly say my hard work and research in the subject matter paid off as some of the recommendations I presented to the DC have been taken into consideration for implementation. The internship was most certainly a great feat as I was able to gain more “real world” experience. Aside from interning with Target, I also completed two accounting courses at Columbus State; yes, the very accounting courses that most business students dread. Other than that, I merely enjoyed the company of good friends and summer entertainment that could only be had here in O-H-I-O!"

Teresa Pratt

Major: Linguistics

Activity: Research project on Ohio dialects

"I spent the summer continuing my research on dialects in Ohio. A recently published dialect atlas carved Ohio into three main dialect areas, and my professor and I are trying to verify the exact location of those dialect boundaries. Over spring break we went to COSI and collected data from over 100 speakers, and I spent the summer analyzing that data. I'm especially interested in perceptual dialectology, so during the interviews we asked people to tell us where they think people talk differently and where they talk the same. My particular focus within the project has been to figure which social categories (i.e. urban-rural, Northern Ohio-Southern Ohio) are most salient to Ohio speakers."

Desiree Riley

Major: African and African American Studies and Political Science

Activity: West African Culture, Society, and History Study Abroad Program

"My trip to Ghana was the greatest and most enlightening three and a half weeks of my life. Since childhood, Africa has been the only continent to which I had a specific need to visit. Ghana is one country in particular that I personally believe should be visited by all members of the African Diaspora. This area, formerly know as the Gold Coast, was the point of disembarkment for many, if not most, of the Africans stolen for use in the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. There is so much that I could describe about the program, including the cuisine, the villages, the hotels, the people, the wildlife, and certainly the trips to the slave dungeons. However, I would encourage those who are interested to participate in this Study Abroad program themselves. Every person that has dreams of studying outside of the country/continent should take advantage of Study Abroad. There are so many scholarship opportunities, none of my friends or I paid a dime for the program (outside of the application fee and passport)."

Kate Roy

Major: Spanish and women's studies; minor in neuroscience

Activity: Field research in San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas, Mexico

"I conducted observational research in Zapatista communities to examine gender relations and women’s community roles and leadership positions. I also interviewed visiting scholars, Mexican academics, and leaders of women’s social activist organizations to find out about indigenous non-Zapatista women’s forms of activism, ideas about feminism, and their progress towards women’s rights. I recommend to anyone to travel if you can with your research; the data I collected will enhance my thesis and my undergraduate experience, I gained a better idea of what I will pursue in my graduate work, and met many inspiring women which has intensified my academic and activist ambition."

Fred Snyder

Position: CFAES Professor and Ohio Sea Grant Extension Program Leader

Activity: Teaching aquatic biology and sportfishing classes at Stone Lab

"Boats and waves and Lake Erie sunshine--a dozen OSU students earned three Phys Ed credit hours in my new Lake Erie Sportfishing course, enjoying adventures that normally come on special vacations. Students learned how and where to catch game fish like walleye, smallmouth and white bass, even catching some of them on tackle they built themselves. By holding the course at the Stone Laboratory, Ohio State's Island Campus on Lake Erie, students could be on the lake from morning until night--and they loved it. Some of these students continued on at the lab, taking biology courses that Stone Lab offered on the island later in the summer, and a few of the students in the aquatic biology course I taught seemed anxious to climb aboard the sportfishing course next summer."

Matt Starr

Activity: Internship with The Daily Show.

Major: English

"I spent my summer in New York City interning at The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. My responsibilities ranged from sorting mail to pulling footage from the tape library for the show to going out on field shoots with the producers and correspondents. The whole atmosphere of the show is electric and I loved being around it. The people working there are creating something that they believe in, and that's why the show is so good. When I wasn't working, I was wandering around New York City and trying not to look like a tourist. I probably wasn't fooling anybody. "

Matt Sugitan

Major: Mechanical Engineering

Activity: Study abroad in Dresden, Germany.

"This summer has been the most enjoyable and enriching experience of my life. As a student in the Dresden language program, I took classes which covered the language and culture of Germany. I learned a great deal from the classes and the weekly trips throughout Germany, but I learned a lot more about the world and myself in addition to the classes. Living in a different country can affect one more than any conventional class can hope to achieve. Studying abroad is truly a unique and life changing experience which I would recommend to anyone."

Matt Thomas

Position: Stone Laboratory Research Coordinator

Activity: Working with undergraduate researchers at Stone Lab

"What did I do this summer? What didn't I do? That's what's so great about working at OSU's Stone Laboratory on Lake Erie. My job is to help students get the research experience they need. With more than 12 undergrad researchers descending on Stone Laboratory every summer, that means more than 12 different kinds of research projects and needs. Not only did we help students get closer to their career goals, but we also took on real issues and real challenges to Lake Erie and our environment. This summer we got closer to understanding why the dead zones are occurring and how exotic species impact our waterways. Getting students up close and personal with the ecosystems or animals they're studying means facing all kinds of challenges. Some days found us scuba diving; others found us steering unmanned submersibles. Regardless of what vehicle we used, our research can help improve our Great Lake. How rewarding is that for a summer's work?"

Alan Yost

Major: Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering

Activity: Planning and designing a campus rain garden

"This summer I had the honor of designing and building a rain garden for the Chadwick Arboretum near the new 4H building. A rain garden uses mesic plants to retain, reduce, and clean rainwater runoff. I had to design the size of the rain garden based on the area of impermeable surfaces around it. The plants were chosen for size, color, and timing. We wanted plants to be there all season long, so we chose early, mid, and late bloomers so there would always be color and plants to clean the runoff. Mary Maloney, the director of the Chadwick Arboretum, was my main adviser while Ann Kemble advised me on the selection of plants needed."