English literature major Shang茅 Purnell was chosen for the honor of carrying聽the college banner at this weekend’s graduation. Study abroad played an important part her聽Husky Experience and helped develop her exciting future goals.
Shang茅 plans to earn聽a doctorate in English literature and teach at the college level. Through this work, she wants to help increase diversity in published聽literary works. She says,聽鈥渢he highbrow elite have set what is highbrow literature 鈥� Shakespeare and other mostly white European authors. We鈥檙e starting to get more diversity, but it鈥檚 still very narrow, it鈥檚 still a Eurocentric perspective. I realize that being a U.S. citizen I have been conditioned to have a Eurocentric view, but I鈥檇 like to give view to the people of color in this world.鈥�
Beyond serving as an officer in the Black Student Union and as a member of the Students for Diversity Coalition,聽Shang茅 also sought new perspectives and leadership experience through international learning.聽Her experiences studying abroad in the United Kingdom and Ghana with UW faculty-led programs were important in developing her goals and provided new insight into diversity issues.聽Particularly while in Ghana, where she tutored school-aged children,聽Shang茅 tried to see world through fresh eyes. “We tried to look at it from not just a Western perspective,鈥� she says.
Scholarships from supported聽Shang茅’s study abroad experiences. She received the GO! Scholarship for her trip to the United Kingdom, and the Fritz Scholarship for the next summer’s program in Ghana.