By the time this magazine reaches your hands, winter will be over and you will already be enjoying warmer days, clearer skies and greener surroundings. Springtime brings new life, and the balmy breeze blows away the chill of winter. Springtime revitalizes hopes, spirits and hearts.
As spring is a time of transition from winter to summer, for some of you it is also the transition from your first year to an internship, and for others from college to a job or to graduate school. This issue of ¿Qué Pasa, OSU? includes a variety of topics that reflect the dynamic environment at The Ohio State University within the context of a very energetic world of interactions and transitions. This is a world that can best be explored through traveling, or in the case of students, by studying abroad. While Yolanda Zepeda from the Committee on Institutional Cooperation provides a general perspective on study abroad opportunities, Garett Heysel shares perspectives from the Honors and Scholars Program, and two Ohio State students talk about their experiences in Spain and Uganda.
On the same topic, Michelle Gaudet’s article deals with her experience and the contrasts as a student who traveled overseas to Venezuela through both a structured program and through an informally arranged adventure. Additionally, the article about Meredith Fabian puts studying abroad in perspective as it relates to providing services and working for non-profit organizations in under-developed countries. And for those in need of career (and life) advice, Cyndi Freeman from the Graduate School has some “motherly” advice to share with all.
Springtime is time to reinvent, but not at the price of forgetting where each of us came from. That is why this issue of ¿Qué Pasa, OSU? also shares two perspectives of the Latin@ presence. For instance, the articles from UCHO and the Multicultural Center concentrate on the internal aspect of the Latin@ presence at Ohio State and present the return of Hispanic Awareness Week in April. Su Opinión addresses the Latin@ presence within the university, asking whether or not the increasing relevance of the Hispanic/Latin@ community nationwide and locally is reflected within the university. Externally, Mercedes Sánchez provides an overview of the accomplishments of Hispanics in the United States and introduces the Reflections on Our Community series. This series will focus on the Latin@ presence in American society, including demographics, issues in education, workforce and participation in economic development, especially in small businesses.
Finally, as the saying goes, “if you do not sow in the spring you will not reap in the autumn;” this edition also includes the profiles of students Bernardo Rios and Milly Valverde, along with Roberto Bonnaci’s experiencia to illustrate how students and faculty are planting seeds in their own way locally and overseas to later reap the benefits.
Congratulations to those graduating this quarter and best of luck with your plans after school. I will see all of you at commencement, but before that make sure to grab your Qué Pasa and enjoy a last stroll in the Oval and a last spring game. That is exactly what I will be doing. Cherish the last moments at Ohio State and never forget you are a Buckeye! |
