by Tasmiah Akter

As the year comes to an end, it is important to reflect on and share thanks with people on campus who make Wesleyan the place that it is, especially graduating seniors. This article spotlights three Global Engagement Minors – Julia, Henry, and Kenzie – who have made the most of their time at Wesleyan and can inspire future Global Engagement Minors to do the same.

A bit about the minor: The Global Engagement Minor (GEM) is a unique opportunity for Wesleyan students to explore their academic interests, extracurricular activities, and language skills while learning how to navigate the world through a lens of cultural self awareness and sensitivity. The GEM provides flexibility like no other, allowing students to select courses that provide a global perspective according to their interests, continue previous language study or begin a new language, and engage in culturally immersive learning opportunities, like study abroad or community engagement, to earn the minor. Email adeegcarlin@wesleyan.edu with any questions about GEM! (Although the official deadline for first year students to apply has passed, we will consider late applications upon request!)

Julia Augustyn ‘25

Julia is an Earth & Environmental Studies Major with minors in Italian Studies and GEM. She picked GEM because as a freshman, she knew her interests related with International Relations, a desire to connect with different cultures and perspectives, and to continue learning Italian. GEM was the perfect way to pursue these passions. 

Julia grew up in Chicago where she had many opportunities to have moments of intercultural learning because of the sizable Mexican population around her. She went to a high school with 4,000 people and was always attracted to the opportunity to learn from other perspectives. Julia’s parents are immigrants and says that this was a way she often connected with people in high school, even if her friends’ parents were immigrants from different countries.

At Wesleyan, she traveled to Brazil for an internship (Iracambi Rainforest Conservation Center) and Italy (Study Abroad). Through both of these opportunities, she pursued environmental science.

When asked about what sets GEM apart from other minors, she says that “GEM is special because of the opportunities and encouragement you get from peers and faculty…Encouragement of the faculty to pursue opportunities beyond your beliefs, like going abroad twice, was invaluable.” She also says that intercultural learning is an endeavor that requires a lot of communication and GEM gives students the tools to do this and do it well.

Henry Leighton ‘25

Henry is a Science & Technology Studies and Hispanic Literature & Cultures double Major with the Global Engagement Minor. He became interested in the minor because he had been studying Spanish for most of his life and wanted to be able to use it in a professional capacity, particularly in healthcare access. He says that just studying a language does not mean one gets the intercultural side of things, one has to to develop the intercultural competence – which he is achieving through GEM. 

At Wesleyan, Henry went to Cuba and Taiwan through the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS). 

When asked about his interest in healthcare, he said, “I’ve always had an interest in community service, but I think my experience studying abroad in Cuba helped me better understand the United States from an outside perspective…I am interested in working with immigrants and populations that speak Mandarin and Spanish…I believe people have a right to be healthy.” He believes his continued study of language starting in elementary school till now has prepared him to accomplish his goals.

Similar to Julia, Henry thinks that GEM is special because of the support that students receive from faculty. He acknowledges the work that Anita Deeg-Carlin does everyday for the minor as its director and in informing students about different opportunities: “For example, I was awarded the Critical Language Scholarship twice, but I wouldn’t have even known about it without the GEM minor.”

Kenzie Kelley ‘25

Kenzie is an English major and minors in GEM. She picked GEM because she felt that its four pillars – off campus immersion, language learning, global coursework, and seminars – aligned with her personal goals. 

In Kenzie’s English classes, she’s been focusing on environmental science and GEM has informed the way she thinks about the content she learns in these classes – particularly as it relates to communication and storytelling. She is taking a class currently called “Transpacific Ecologies,” which is about learning to write fiction about the environment. In this class, students do a lot of work on how to effectively communicate a point or key idea.

For study abroad, Kenzie went to Madrid, Spain. She loved it because it forced her to have an intense relationship with someone from a different culture and to learn to communicate well in a different language. She says that GEM prepared her for miscommunications and mishaps during her homestay. 

GEM is special to Kenzie because of the global focused opportunities it presents. Through GEM, she found out about a conference with Wesleyan in Shanghai – an opportunity she found out about through an email from Anita. Kenzie also comments on the agency students have in manufacturing their GEM pathway because this agency allowed her to pursue her environmental interest in a global lens.

Thank you to Julia, Henry, and Kenzie for sharing with everyone their GEM experience. We hope this article is helpful to prospective minors! Please email adeegcarlin@wesleyan.edu with any questions or concerns.