Prepare for the Parents

Hey everyone! This week, I decided to take a break from the student club posts to highlight an important event that happened this weekend. Last Friday and Saturday at Stanford University was Parents' Weekend! Almost all American universities have some sort of weekend for families to come up, visit their student, and learn about what their student has been doing (hopefully their tuition money is being put to good use!). This year, more than 3,600 family members participated in the 2014 Parents' Weekend at Stanford. The annual event gives family members a taste of what life is like for their Stanford undergraduates, and of course, allows them to spend time with their student! There were many events occurring all over campus to broadcast the amazing aspects of Stanford to parents and other family members, like a Q&A with the president, tours of different university programs and facilities, career planning seminars, and a showcase highlighting the amazing talents of different student groups on campus (like dance groups, a cappella groups, and other organizations that will be discusses in greater detail in later club posts!). Even though the events were informative and entertaining, I was most excited to spend time with my parents. It is going to be a long three weeks until I see them again for Spring Break!
Check out the photos and video below for some highlights from Parents' Weekend.

I loved showing my parents around campus!

Parents questioning the campus leaders

It isn't Parent's Weekend without the appropriate merchandise!

Do you like the idea of Parent's Weekend? Would you attend? Let me know in the comments! xoxo

Groups and Government

Hey everyone! Another great club I am involved with on campus is Stanford in Government (SIG), a 50-year-old nonpartisan student organization dedicated to increasing political awareness at Stanford and connecting students with opportunities in public service. It is one of the oldest clubs on campus, as it was founded in 1963 as a program that offered summer internships to students in Washington, DC. Today, SIG does so much more that just offer internship opportunities, but serves as a policy forum for the entire school. We host large lecture and conference events about topical policy issues and run voter registration drives and public service workshops. I am on the Alumni Outreach Committee, so I am responsible for alumni communication and planning of campus-wide events with notable guests speakers.

Every board member gets a sign on their door!

A policy event in action

However, the most exciting part of SIG is the internship opportunities! Each year, SIG provides 43 state, national, and international summer fellowships. And the great part, any student regardless of age or major can apply! We had over 200 applicants this year! Some of the exciting fellowships this year were with the New York City Economic Development Corporation in New York City, the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington D.C., the United Nations High Commission on Refugees in Geneva, Switzerland, and the World Wildlife Fund in Belize. Talk about some great opportunities! These would never be available to the Stanford students without the work of SIG.

Being in this club has been an amazing experience for me. I have been able to expand my passion for policy while meeting new people who share my same interests. I have also been able to meet key leaders in politics like Congressman Joe Kennedy (fun fact-he's a Stanford alumnus!). I have also been exposed to great internship position opportunities in Washington D.C. and expanded my political network. I cannot wait to see where this club takes me in the future!

I can't wait to talk about more exciting Stanford clubs with you! Would you join a club like Stanford in Government? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo