Introducing the Fall 2018 Student Correspondent Team

Alexis Zamira Maciel
CET Brazil, Photographer
American University
Class of 2019
Major: International Studies
Minor: Portuguese 
Oi! Tudo bem? My name is Alexis (Ale) Maciel and I’m an International Studies major at American University in Washington D.C.. Curiosity has been central to my existence ever since I can remember. Having lived in Mexico for the formative parts of my childhood, and having had the opportunity to explore other countries throughout my life, strengthened my desire to pursue a degree in International Studies and has further fueled my curiosity for other parts of the world. It is in the act of fully engaging in other cultures and experiences that influence the manner in which we view social equity, improve the social and economic conditions of others, and respect differences. It is my hope, that throughout my time in Brazil, I will be able to capture the complexities and beauties of what makes up the Brazilian culture, society and people.

Sinclair Blue
CET Brazil, Blogger
Georgetown University SFS
Class of 2020
Major: International Relations
E ai, galera? My name is Sinclair, and I study International Relations with a focus on Global Health. I am particularly interested in histories (and presents) of revolution, resistance, political autonomy, and freedom throughout the African Diaspora. The largest number of enslaved Africans were sent to Brazil, and it was the last country to abolish slavery. How has that shaped Brazil? Let’s discover together!

Bita Kavoosi
CET Beijing – Internship, Blogger
Colorado College
Class of 2020
Major: International Political Economy
Hi, everyone! My name is Bita, and I study International Political Economy at Colorado College. At my home school, I am a Zumba instructor, and am active in my sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, eating, and sleeping. I am so excited to be going to China, and to be sharing my experience with my blog readers!

Emma Tilley
CET Beijing – Intensive Chinese Language, Blogger
Brown University
Major: Literary Arts
Hi! I’m Emma Tilley, a junior at Brown University majoring in literary arts. Though Brown doesn’t offer minors, my other interests include comparative literature, languages, and translation. My medium-term goal to read and discuss Chinese literature in the original has brought me to Beijing. Having both self-studied Mandarin and taken a year long introductory course, CET’s language pledge environment sounded like the best way to improve quickly and comprehensively. I’m looking forward to sharing both practical information and reflections on student life in Beijing.

Bryn O’Hara
CET Beijing – Intensive Chinese Language, Blogger
College of the Holy Cross
Class of 2020
Major: Chinese 
你们好！My name is Bryn O’Hara and I am a junior at College of the Holy Cross majoring in Chinese.  This semester I am studying with CET in Beijing.  I am so excited to share with you all my daily life in China, including going to class, living with a Chinese roommate, and exploring in the city!  Beijing offers everything from historical and traditional sites such as the Forbidden City to contemporary and exciting attractions such as the 798 Art District – and of course, amazing food.  I am looking forward to documenting my time in Beijing and giving you a small taste of what I learn during my time here.

Fina Short
Middlebury School in China: Kunming, Blogger
Tufts University
Class of 2020
Majors: International Relations, Chinese
大家好! My name is Fina short and I’m a junior at Tufts University studying International Relations and Chinese. Born and raised in Seattle, WA, I love hiking, journaling, playing frisbee and am on a never ending search for the next best ever cup of coffee. Studying abroad in China has been my dream ever since I started learning Mandarin in college, motivated by a strange desire to understand a language that everyone I knew told me was impossible. I haven’t given up yet – and I can’t wait to share my semester in the City of Eternal Spring with you all!

Elizabeth Underwood
Middlebury School in China: Hangzhou
Washington and Lee University
Class of 2020
Majors: Strategic Communications, East Asian Languages and Literatures

Maggie Jackson
CET Harbin, Blogger
Georgetown University
Class of 2019
M.A. Communications, Culture, and Technology

Omelebele Edeoga
CET Shanghai, Blogger
Sarah Lawrence College
Class of 2020
Major: International Political Economy
Minor: Languages
Hi y’all! My name is Omelebele “Belle” Edeoga, and I am originally from Nigeria, but now live in Texas. I am a junior at Sarah Lawrence College in New York, where I study International Political Economy and Languages (Chinese and Spanish). I always knew I wanted to study abroad, and I felt drawn to China because of its rich and diverse cultural and political history. I am most excited to see how Shanghai differs from other places I have visited and I hope to improve my Chinese, explore the city while learning about China’s political economy.

Victoria Ontiveros
CET Shanghai, Photographer
Johns Hopkins University
Class of 2020
Majors: International Studies, Economics, East Asian Studies

大家好！My name is Victoria and I’m a junior at Johns Hopkins University majoring in International Studies, Economics, and East Asian Studies. I began studying in Chinese my freshman year of high school, so I’m going onto my seventh year of struggling to perfect my tones and learning new characters and grammar structures. I originally chose to take Chinese as my language in high school because I thought it was the hardest one, but now focusing my studies on China due to its increasing importance in global affairs. My goal for my time in Shanghai is to improve my fluency in Mandarin to the point that I can realistically live and work in China.

Hadley McCollester
Film Production at FAMU, Blogger
Bowdoin College
Majors: Visual Storytelling in Contemporary Culture
Hi, Y’all! My name is Hadley McCollester and I will be a FAMU student correspondent this Fall semester in beautiful Prague! I am a Junior at Bowdoin college where I have a self-designed major called Visual Storytelling in Contemporary Culture (it’s basically Film and Media studies, but I couldn’t just call it that, could I?). I was born and raised in South Carolina and can give you some killer vegetarian recommendations anywhere you wanna go. I have four cats whom I love dearly and wish I could have brought abroad with me. I love trying to bake all of the things they make on the Great British Bake Off and am seriously bummed that my apartment here in Prague does not have an oven, but c’est la vie! I am so excited to share my experience here with you and I sincerely hope that you will be able to glean some sort of usefulness from my ramblings! Ciao!

Helena Gruensteidl
Film Production at FAMU, Photographer
Grinnell College
Class of 2020
Majors: Film, Communication, Media Studies
Hi all! My name is Helena and I’m a junior from Grinnell College. For the next 9 months, I’ll be broadening my intellectual, cultural, and personal perspectives by studying in Prague to learn more about media production from a global point of view. This will be an exciting new adventure for me and I look forward to sharing my photos and experiences with everyone on this blog! Ahoj!

Emilee Zhang
Brandeis Midyear at CET Florence, Photographer
Brandeis University
Class of 2022
Hi, my name is Emilee Zhang! I’m from CT and will be a freshman at Brandeis University! I was a competitive figure skater for 9 years and I love art and photography! I can’t think of a more exciting or better way to kick off my college years than studying in Florence, a city full of art, history, beautiful architecture, and great food! I look forward to sharing all of my photographs with you!

Zoe Pringle
Brandeis Midyear at CET Florence, Blogger
Brandeis University
Class of 2022
Major: Health: Science, Society, and Policy
Minor: Social Justice 
After a midyear acceptance to Brandeis, I decided I wanted to spend my first semester of college studying abroad in Florence, Italy! I love photography, exploring the outdoors, cooking, writing and activism. I can’t wait to learn the language and immerse myself in the Italian culture while abroad. I hope to challenge my photography skills and update my blogposts with both film and digital photography, and to become a more seasoned traveler through my time in Italy.

Cosima Smith
CET Siena, Blogger
University of Virginia
Class of 2019
Major: Gender and Sexuality
I’ve always had a love for culture—I’m one of the few kids whose first dream job wasn’t to be a doctor or an astronaut, but to be an archaeologist. As I’ve grown, my love has developed and evolved, and I’ve been granted wonderfully transformative opportunities to pursue my love of language and culture in various parts of the world. My college experience has been interesting to say the very least. For the past three years, I have been in a state of motion, from Salvador to Belém in Brazil, to New Delhi, to what happens to be my next destination: Siena, Italy! My introduction to Italy was a class in Prato, a city 15 minutes from Florence by train, in January of 2017. I immediately fell in love. The experience was beautiful, the people lovely, and I could make my way around even the residential areas using a combination of French and Portuguese, picking up bits of Italian as I went. I’m more than excited to spend my last year of my undergraduate career honing my knowledge of Italian language and culture while looking into graduate programs focused on religious and practical media studies, as well as fellowships for photography, writing, and teaching English abroad.

Autumn Swain
CET Siena, Photographer
University of Virginia
Class of 2021
Major: Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law

Kyla Smith
CET Japan, Blogger
Scripps College
Class of 2020
Majors: Asian American Studies, Asian Studies
Minor: Astronomy/Physics

Madison Mauro
Jordan – Intensive Arabic Language, Blogger
American University
Class of 2020
Majors: International Studies, Economics

---

Micheala Sharp
Middle East Studies & Internship in Jordan, Blogger
Macalester College
Class of 2019
Major: Classical Languages
Minors: Critical Theory and Media Studies 

Marhaban! Traveling to Amman, Jordan is an achievement in itself, no one in my immediate family has ever crossed the Atlantic. In high school, I picked Arabic because it aesthetically pleased me but I realized that it connects me to the African diaspora and reveals non-Western perspectives. I am excited to meet new people, restructure my mind to a different language, and immerse myself in a different culture. I love interactions between power, media, and language so I spend lots of time in front of many canvases and screens. But in Amman I want to be present- the motto for the next 15 weeks will be ‘Adapt and Thrive’. Please, sit back and enjoy the show.

---

Zhang Yeye
Middle East Studies & Internship in Jordan, Photographer
Hampshire College
Class of 2020
Majors: Molecular Biology, Arabic

I choose CET internship program because I want to combine Molecular biology and Arabic together. The ability to understand others’ needs, and share experience and establish friendships with native speakers is an essential skill I expect to continue develop abroad. Making progress in my learning of Arabic vocabulary—most especially those in relation to science—as well as working in-person with effected communities to learn through the example of peers will be indispensable in preparing for my last year college research program. In this research or project, I would like to help and make a little change in molecular biology perspective for people who are suffering by international public health crises.

---

Zoe Maalouf
CET Taiwan, Blogger
University of Puget Sound
Class of 2020
Major: Politics and Government (with emphasis on International Relations)
Minor: Chinese Language and English Language 
Hi everyone! My name is Zoe and I’m a junior at University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. I love reading, writing, and listening to music, but my foremost hobby is curling up into burrito form and binging cringeworthy Chinese and Korean dramas. Ever since I was a kid I have wanted to study abroad, so I am beyond excited for this semester in Taipei! I started learning Chinese with our tight-knit Chinese Department in freshman year, and am now in love with it. I chose CET Taiwan because of my interest in approaching fluency and in gaining experience for a future career in foreign affairs. I am very academically interested in Chinese and Taiwanese culture, history, and politics, so catch me absorbing everything I possibly can to share it with you all!

---

Sarah Phipps, 斐朴
CET Taiwan, Blogger
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Class of 2019
Major: Management & Society
Minor: Chinese 

Hi everyone! My name is Sarah Phipps, my Chinese name is 斐朴 (pronounced faye pooh). Since I started studying Mandarin Chinese in 8th grade, a dream of mine has been to immerse myself into the Chinese language and culture for an extended period of time. Over the summer, I worked with Cisco System’s Corporate Social Responsibility Marketing team to document the impact initiatives have on individuals around the globe. I aspire to combine my interest in healthcare with Chinese to have a career that positively changes the world.

---

Amanda Nguyen
CET Vietnam, Blogger & Photographer
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities
Class of 2019
Major: Biology, Society, and Environment
Minors: Public Health, Global Studies, Geography

Hi! My name is Amanda Nguyen and I am a senior at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities majoring in Biology, Society, and Environment and minoring in Public Health, Global Studies, and Geography. As a Vietnamese-American and the daughter of immigrants, I have always felt a strong connection to Việt Nam. Though I have never been there, I feel a deep nostalgia whenever my parents and grandparents tell me stories or show me pictures. Thus, it felt right to study abroad with CET Việt Nam in the city that sustained and nourished my ancestors. This semester, I look forward to learning more about my heritage, being immersed in a city full of community, and finding the best place to get milk tea.