Active Citizenship
KSA Jedi Training
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, Community, School of Arts and Sciences, Social Media, Student Experience, Students, Video, Web on May 2, 2012
Tufts Korean Student Association (KSA) is more than just a campus culture group – their Big Brother/Big Sister program involves them with the Boston community as well. On a monthly basis, members of KSA are paired with children from Korea who have been adopted by American families for a day of cultural activities, crafts, food, and even, in the case of this video, Jedi training. Check out the video below for a fun look into the program and visit their website for information on how to get involved.
Root to Fruit
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, Environment, School of Arts and Sciences, Student Experience, Video on April 30, 2012
Undergraduate Carolyn Pace, E12, is one of 1,237 start-up applicants participating in this year’s MassChallenge. Her project, titled Root to Fruit, aims to help bring locally grown food to mass grocers while simultaneously improving the quality of life for farmers by giving them access to formerly inaccessable markets. Pace is looking to launch the program in Boise in the spring of 2013 and then expand to other Northwest areas by 2016. You can hear Pace explain more about her start-up in the video below, as well as sign up and vote for her proposal here.
Tufts School of Medicine Multicultural Show
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, International, School of Medicine, Social Media, Staff, Student Experience, Students, Video on April 19, 2012
Last month, the Tufts School of Medicine posted videos on YouTube of their annual Multicultural Performing Arts Show (MPAG), hosted by the university’s Office of Multicultural Affairs. The show consists of students and professors putting on performances for the rest of the student body in an effort to raise funds for college diversity scholarships for high school seniors in the Boston area. Here’s one performance from this year’s show, but make sure to visit their YouTube page for more videos.
Hoping for a BridgeAbroad to Chile
Posted by Katherine McManus in Active Citizenship, International, School of Arts and Sciences, Student Experience, Web on April 13, 2012
Searching for a job after graduation, even just for the summer can be stressful. Searching for a job abroad? That’s even more challenging.
Emily German (A12) is up to the challenge. Emily is vying for a competitive scholarship to help her get the training she needs to teach English in Chile! The scholarship competition is judged on a written submission as well as “Likes” on Facebook.
Let’s face it, though: searching for jobs abroad is a daunting task, and teaching certification courses carry pretty hefty price tags for a recent college graduate. I am determined to follow through on my dream to live and work in Latin America, however, and winning this scholarship would give me the opportunity to obtain top-quality TEFL certification and acquire the skills I need to become a professional English teacher.”
“I believe that education breaks down all barriers: it sparks inquisitiveness and fosters understanding about other people and cultures, which in turn engenders greater communication and cooperation, from the local to the international community.
So far, Emily’s submission has 269 likes. Help a Jumbo follow her dreams – vote for Emily and share on Facebook and Twitter! Voting ends on 4/15/12.
Tufts Fights TB (and Heads to Seattle!)
Posted by Kimberly Moniz in Active Citizenship, School of Arts and Sciences, Student Experience, Students, Video on March 30, 2012
Four Tufts computer science students – Greg Wong, Jason Cheng, Sean Chung, and Xihan Zhang - are heading to Seattle, WA to compete in the US finals of the Microsoft US Imagine Cup competition. Under the name “Team Eos/Medivise,” the group developed a cloud and mobile-based service that automates the process of monitoring patients undergoing tuberculosis treatments.
Medivise was entered into Imagine Cup’s Software Design Competition, which focuses on “creating real-world applications and solutions that can help make the world a better place.” Teams use Microsoft tools to create software applications that aim to solve global problems like hunger, environmental sustainability, and access to education and healthcare.
Check out the team’s submission video:
Tufts Japanese Culture Club remembers earthquake
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, Blogs, School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering, Social Media, Student Experience, Students, Uncategorized on March 29, 2012
March 11th marked the one year anniversary of the 9.0 earthquake in Northern Japan. To demonstrate their remembrance of the devastating event, as well as their continued support of its survivors, the Tufts Japanese Culture Club put together a video that compiles existing video footage of the earthquake aftermath coupled with information on both the effects and JCC’s efforts. You can visit their website to learn about what they’re doing to show their support, as well as watch the video below.
Biking and Building Cross-Country
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, Blogs, School of Engineering, Student Experience, Students on March 27, 2012
Dan Halpert, E12, has big post-graduation plans, and we’re not talking about immediately starting a 9 to 5 job. Halpert is looking to bike across the country as a member of Bike and Build, an organization for people who want to spend their summer alternating between biking, building affordable homes and shelters, and spreading the word on the affordable housing crisis. To raise funds for his trip, Halpert has set up a website and a biker profile where people can learn about his cause, as well as donate. He currently has reached about a third of his $4500 goal. In his profile, Dan explains his motivation for the trip:
Neighboring my hometown, and just a few hundred feet from my house, is Bridgeport, CT, where one can witness the affordable housing crisis and high levels of homelessness first hand. Growing up so close to that made me realize how much we take for granted the simple pleasure of a roof over our heads and that affordable housing should be granted to every person, regardless of their socioeconomic standing.
You can donate to Halpert’s cause here.
LUX is back!
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering, Student Experience, Students, Uncategorized, Video on March 23, 2012
Tufts Chinacare is preparing yet again for their annual fundraiser fashion show, LUX. Each year, LUX raises money to donate to the Chinacare Foundation, an organization that helps orphans in China get the surgeries they need in order to thrive. The group puts on a show using student models and clothes from local and corporate sponsors. This year, they have put together a group of 27 Tufts models and filmed a new trailer video to get students excited about the show. You can view the video below:
Guest performers at the April 12th event in Cohen will include BlackOut, Spirit of Color, TURBO, and the director of Tufts Gospel Choir, David Coleman. Tickets are $8 per person, or $10 for a ticket and five raffle tickets. You can find out more about the show on the Tufts LUX site.
Actively Teaching Citizenship
Posted by Katherine McManus in Active Citizenship, Blogs, Student Experience, Students on March 14, 2012
What says active citizenship better than actually teaching civics? Erica Rigby, A15, is doing just that through Generation Citizen, an organization that empowers underrepresented youth to be active participants in the democratic process.
Prior to heading into Boston area schools, Rigby attended a training workshop with other Boston area volunteers, and shared her reflections on the Generation Citizen Blog.
Departing the room that day shortly before 5 o’clock with the Mentor handbooks and curriculums under our arms, the collective sentiment was more something along the lines of solidarity, satisfaction, and great expectation. This season we’ll be riding in tandem, as Mentors, to encourage these students to engage in their democratic classroom and walk up to the open mic.
The entire blog post can be found at Cue the Open Mic on the Generation Citizen Blog.
EPIIC on the Web
Posted by Ashley Wood in Active Citizenship, Alumni, Community, Environment, Faculty, International, Photos, Social Media, Staff, Students on March 5, 2012
The 2011-2012 EPIIC symposium, a four day event that took place from February 22 to 26, was comprised of lectures and panels discussing various aspects of this year’s subject, “Conflict in the 21st Century,” and was put on by the Tufts Institute of Global Leadership. While tickets to the full symposium could run up to $75 a pop (the price was largely discounted for Tufts students and alums), the IGL made it possible to stay in the know no matter where you were, both during and after the symposium. You can scroll back on their twitter account to check out great EPIIC quotes or see their Flickr albums for photos of the many events and speakers.