Photo Courtesy of Madison Yinger

“In my hometown, I danced with a company [Northwest Classical Ballet] for 14 years. Everyone tells me I look like a ballerina. I’m hoping that means I have good posture. I’m really passionate about literature; I read constantly and write whenever I have the time. I am from a little town right outside of Portland, Oregon: Vancouver, Washington. I went to an arts high school, the Vancouver School of Arts and Academics. It was tiny, there was a three-step interview process to get into this public school and our graduating class was only about 68 students my year. I wanted to come to New York for probably the same reason every 20-year-old wants to come to New York: to live the dream. When I first got to Hofstra, I started studying medicine. I had dreams of becoming an osteopath, which were fueled by my grandma, who is a nurse and Craniosacral therapist. I was also learning Spanish. In my sophomore year, Dr. Maria Anastasio convinced me to study abroad in Oaxaca, Mexico, and that experience changed my life. When I got back to New York, I realized I didn’t like studying medicine. My bio grades weren’t great, the material wasn’t engaging me enough. The only reason I was really doing it was to be a doctor that fixes the injustices in our healthcare system. I started devoting my life to being an activist, and I started getting involved. Now, I am working toward a B.A. in Spanish with civic engagement and general business minors. I am a Herstory facilitator, Global Mentor, Spanish tutor, Civic Engagement fellow and looking forward to being [a resident assistant] (RA) in Bill of Rights next fall. I facilitate writing workshops in Spanish at Glen Cove High School to teach students – most of whom are immigrants or have parents who are – the importance of self-advocacy and how they can use that to shape hearts, minds and policies. Honestly, my dream job is to just keep doing this – keep being an activist and making a difference in people’s lives. In a couple weeks, I will start an internship with Girls Inc., and that’s a company that I could totally see myself working for long term. I have a lot of ideas, and I think it’s a place that will help me build those and keep doing what I’m doing, but on a much bigger scale. I want to empower women and use my bilingualism to give a voice to people who have been silenced.”