Student story

I feel guilty when my friends at the University of Minnesota ask about homework or midterms and I admit that I’m actually spending the next day paddling down the Mississippi River or learning about food justice on a farm. Amidst a year that continues to provide hurdles and tragedies, having the space for rest and transformative learning has been important.  Read More »

Each term, one participant from each HECUA program takes on the role of student blogger, sending regular dispatches from the field. Maya Ulrich (she/her) is HECUA’s student blogger for Inequality in America Fall 2020. She is student at University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, majoring in Art and Psychology. Read on for her final post! In high school […] Read More »

Each term, one participant from each HECUA program takes on the role of student blogger, sending regular dispatches from the field. Sara de Sobrino (she/her) is HECUA’s student blogger for Environmental Sustainability fall 2020. She is student at University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, majoring in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, minoring in Sustainability Studies. Read on for […] Read More »

Each term, one participant from each HECUA program takes on the role of student blogger, sending regular dispatches from the field. Maya Ulrich (she/her) is HECUA’s student blogger for Inequality in America Fall 2020. She is student at University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, majoring in Art and Psychology. Read on for her next post! Dear Inequality […] Read More »

Each term, one participant from each HECUA program takes on the role of student blogger, sending regular dispatches from the field. Samantha Johnson is HECUA’s student blogger for New Zealand: Culture and the Environment this spring. She is a student at Hamline University, majoring in Environmental Studies and Global Studies, minoring in Chinese. Read on for […] Read More »

Each term, one participant from each HECUA program takes on the role of student blogger, sending regular dispatches from the field. AV Lee-A-Yong is HECUA’s student blogger for the Conflict, Peace and Transition program in Northern Ireland this spring. Ze is a student at Swarthmore College, majoring in peace and conflict studies, minoring in psycholgoy. […] Read More »

When I see someone who does not have what I have, I think “they probably want x, y, and z because I enjoy/have those things.” Because of my experience, imagining new housing and coffee shops sounds like a great way to bring people out of a mode of survival in the Jackson neighborhood where we stayed, but that’s because I’m only seeing the neighborhood from MY lens. How would I have ever been able to guess their needs? Read More »

Think of where you are sitting/standing right now and all the other people who have occupied that same space. Now think that those people were property to another human being. My eyes saw the same fields stretching out in front of me. My skin felt the same Louisiana sun beating down. The weight of past lives that have been lived and injustices that have been suffered hit me like a semi truck. Read More »

All these people, and many, many more, helped me bridge the gap between textbook and reality and inspire me to embrace, whole-heartedly, the resistance against injustice and inequality within the country. They opened themselves up to the class and used their radical vulnerability as a means to teach us of the oppression they have faced and will continue to face. And it is for this that I think HECUA is so dang special. It provided the means for radical relationships to form and created space to learn from those who are leading the fight against inequality in America. Read More »

During the last couple of days, as we tried to say goodbye to each other and the town we'd come to love so well, I struggled to find words. Even now, a whole week out of there, I still can't grasp the right words. I don't know how to write this post and convey the sadness I felt in leaving, or the profound joy of life I discovered while there. As a big talker, I find myself in a massively uncomfortable situation. Read More »