I have created two testimonials and one flyer with the sole purpose of featuring a more diverse population of students. At the beginning of each semester, my advisors provide the interns with an excel sheet, which compiles a list of all students who have taken a J Term course in the past. From that list, us interns are tasked with emailing the students we know and asking them for testimonials regarding their J Term experience. I recognized Kalvin Cho, a recent URI graduate who majored in Civil Engineering and Chinese. It was important for me to showcase diverse students who were interested in careers in STEM, since there is a prevalent lack of cultural representation within the field. 

I was also tasked with creating a testimonial for ITR 300 and a flyer that communicated the beginning of open enrollment for J Term courses. When it came to the testimonial, my advisor, Nicole, referred Imani Blake. I was so pleased with the photo Imani shared, since it features her P.I.N.K. Women stole, which is a multicultural sisterhood on campus. Imani perfectly exemplifies an involved student at URI. I had total creative control over the open enrollment flyer, so I decided to look through stock images of students on campus from the university’s Flickr account. I wasn’t completely sold on any photos, since I didn’t feel that they captured a diverse group of students. This is when I decided to use a photo of my coworkers and I from orientation this summer, since we all come from completely different backgrounds and really represented the university’s demographic well. Both testimonials and the open enrollment flyer were well received and I was happy to contribute to the creation of a more diverse and inclusive community at URI.