What makes you a Difference Maker?
When I was named a Difference Maker, I thought of people in my life and those whom I’d read about that made a difference, in both small and large ways. I thought about how those people did what they believed to be right and just, worked hard and never gave up—no matter how adverse the situation was. I believe I’m a Difference Maker because of my desire to make a change, but my willingness to listen to the opinions of others who might disagree with me; my determination to make things happen, but my flexibility to make changes when necessary, and lastly, because of my perseverance in viewing obstacles as things that can propel myself and others to better places and opportunities. I also feel that I’m a Difference Maker because I lead by example. I hope that when others see me working toward making a change for what I believe is right—by being flexible and never giving up—that they’ll follow that path as well.
Highlight your campus achievements:
Because of the amazing opportunities offered at the UM-Dearborn, I’ve had many opportunities to achieve great things over the last four years. I was fortunate enough to have earned the Chancellor’s Scholarship, the Slosberg & Sorscher Memorial Scholarship, the Grace & Evelyn Kachaturoff Scholarship and the Michigan Competitive Scholarship. At the University of Michigan’s Honors Convocation in Ann Arbor, I’ve been named a James B. Angell Scholar twice, and earned University Honors a total of seven times. On December 16, 2016, I graduated with High Distinction at the Fall 2016 commencement ceremony, where I was also selected to have the honor of speaking on behalf of the students.
As a member of the University of Michigan Figure Skating Club (UMFSC), I’ve competed in dozens of events, earning over 30 medals over the four years I skated with the team. I helped the team earn four consecutive trips to the US Figure Skating Intercollegiate Team National Championships. I was a member of UM-Dearborn's chapter of Phi Alpha Theta history honors fraternity and I continue to work for the Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive, housed in CASL, doing social media work and research. I utilized the archive and the other sources available because of it being in my senior capstone research paper, “The Conflicting Narratives of Genocide: Intentionalism Versus Functionalism in the Creation and Evolution of the Auschwitz Camp System.”
Highlight your leadership experiences both on and off campus:
On campus, I’ve had leadership roles in both UMFSC and in Phi Alpha Theta, serving on board positions in each organization. I was a social medial co-chair of UMFSC for the 2015-2016 competition season. As a student mentor in Dr. Jamie Wraight's class, HIST 387, Aspects of the Holocaust, I was able to use the knowledge of the topic and research skills to teach other students about it and guide them in the best direction on their work. I loved this leadership role because I was able to foster growth in others and it also helped me grow by considering things from new perspectives. I was the historian of Phi Alpha Theta history honors fraternity, where I would run social media platforms and plan events for the organization. I’ve learned from these positions, and from my job as an ice skating coach at the Novi Ice Arena, that leadership is often beyond having the title of being a leader.
I remember once, when I thought I should have gotten a certain leadership award in high school, my mother told me (quoting “A Few Good Men”), “‘You don’t need to wear a patch in your arm to have honor. You don’t need a title to be a leader.” Being a leader is to lead by example, and sometimes leading even when there is no title to the leadership role. Every single day, I lead by actions I do and don’t take. In the classroom, I have a huge responsibility to be a strong leader, because I have the opportunity to, as cheesy as it sounds, shape the hearts and minds of our world’s future.
What is your dream career and/or long term life goal?
I’m beginning my career in education, and I’m very excited to teach the subjects I’m most passionate about to the students in my future classrooms. After spending time working in an archive and intimately viewing artifacts while on a study abroad in Poland, I’ve noticed that I also have a desire to work more closely with history itself. I’d love to work in a museum one day—perhaps in the education department. I’m also considering eventually applying to a graduate program in historic preservation. This way, I can merge the love I have of history and artifacts with the standards required in education to create curriculum for a museum. Educating about history—its relevance, importance, and influence—is essential because, as it is often said, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it sure does rhyme.” And, as a great history professor told me, “Why do we learn what we learn about history if not to teach others about why it matters?” I think that to have the opportunity to teach more about history through artifacts and oral histories can allow me to show why it does, and will always be, important.
What was your most defining moment at UM-Dearborn?
It's hard for me to choose a single defining moment at UM-Dearborn; I have to choose at least two. Mostly because I’ve had countless opportunities at UM-Dearborn, and many of them have shaped my future in ways for which I’ll forever be grateful. The first was my experience on a study abroad trip to Poland in May and June of 2015. During the month spent traveling to six different cities in this beautiful country, not only did I learn more about the history I’m most passionate about—the Holocaust—but I also developed some of the greatest friendships and gained some of the most amazing mentors in Dr. Jamie Wraight and Dr. Martin Hershock. After this trip, I was fortunate enough to have independent studies with both of these amazing historians. There are friends I made on this trip that I still speak to on a daily basis, and memories that I think about almost just as often. Having the opportunity to learn and explore with people who share the passion and many of the same interests about history as I do, visiting museums and memorials and wandering through gorgeous cities and eating delicious food was one of the most amazing and defining moments of my time at UM-Dearborn, and of my life.
The other defining moment was the first time I competed at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor. Skating across that block M and hearing "representing the University of Michigan" will be something I will always remember. I skated pretty well that day, earning first place in both of my individual events and helping win first place in one of the team events. That was also the day our team qualified for what would become the first of four US Figure Skating Intercollegiate Team Championships at Dartmouth College, where I took home the pewter medal. While the hardware taken home from Yost that day was special, it was more special to me to be skating at the arena where my late father had taken me to hockey games and bought me my first “Michigan Figure Skating” t-shirt four years earlier. Skating for Michigan was a defining moment in my skating career, and I’m grateful for the friendships and memories I made with my teammates throughout those four fun years on the ice.