My Social Venture

So my Social Venture Project (One of our 3 capstone projects) is starting to come along.

It's called ACT-Activism Consulting for Teens (big props to Noah Bopp for the name!) and it basically helps teens become effective advocates for causes that they care about. We do this through mentoring and offering resources.

It's still coming along and in the starting stages, and I've just launched the website: http://www.activismconsulting.org/. It's not done, but check it out if you have a chance! :)

to blog or not to blog...that is the question

I'm trying to decide whether or not I want to keep blogging now that I'm back. It really wouldn't be a "dance party in DC" anymore but still....I just don't know though. If you want to weigh in please let me know :)

P.S. I got to Puerto Rico today for our family vacation, 14 people. So excited to be with my family and where it's warm but I still miss SEGL so much :(

See ya later SEGL, I will miss you!

Today we, the Fall Class of 2010, graduated from SEGL. The graduation ceremony was really great, every faculty and student spoke for a little while, and it was really moving. My Mom, Grandpa, and his wife, Lorraine came, which meant alot to me.

While of course I'm happy to have graduated and have got to this point, I am more sad and nostalgic than I ever would have thought I would be. I want to go back to SEGL so bad. As I'm writing this, I'm sitting in my house in Needham, MA waiting to see my fellow SEGLettes run down the stairs being all crazy, but sadly I know I won't. It's so quiet without them and I feel empty in many ways without them. SEGL students and faculty are like my family, and I miss them so much already.

We have had so many amazing memories at SEGL, and we've been through so much together. I still remember meeting everyone the first day, and watching the footage of 9/11 the 2nd day. Instantly, I felt so at home and welcomed, and now I feel so grateful to have been able to share the experience with such amazing people.

As some people know, I found SEGL through a facebook ad a few days before I left for my summer program, Longacre, this summer. It seemed like fate. SEGL seemed like the perfect school for me, and I really needed a change in my life. I decided to apply one day, skyped with Noah Bopp the next, and had all my essays and the application done the next day. Clearly it was a really quick process, because I was leaving for the whole summer. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

SEGL really was life-changing in so many ways. It really did change me for the better and I will never forget it. Our Class did the "most likely" thing and I got voted most likely to work at SEGL, and I hope I eventually do. I love it there so much.

As the saying goes, "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

And as Noah would say, SEGL isn't about what we do there, but what we do when we're home. The point of SEGL is that we go home.

Again I really want to say,
I LOVE EVERYONE AT SEGL SO MUCH AND I WILL NEVER FORGET ANY OF YOU. THIS IS NOT A GOODBYE BUT A SEE YA LATER!

The final days

Today, Thursday, is one of the last days that we'll be here. I really can't even put into words how upset I am. I really really don't want to leave, I love it here.

But we've been having a fun-filled last couple of days.

Today, we met with the Southeast Asia and the Pacific Expert, Christine Chan-Downer, in the Office to Combat and Monitor Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP) at the State Dept. We presented out policy on combatting sex trafficking in Thailand to her, and it went really well. She seemed to really like the policy, and she had some great feedback. She knew so much because she's very active in the fight against human trafficking, and has alot of experience with Thailand. She goes there alot and had a bunch of stories to tell us that made the issue even more real. Meeting with her was really cool, and she gave us all copies of the State Dept. 2010 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, which is very legit, it's like a book. That was really really nice of her.

Some of us in front of the White House after the tour

After that, we rushed to the White House for a tour. I've gotten a tour of the more working-part of the White House earlier this semester from a family friend who works in the White House, but this was a different part, which was really cool to see.
             
THANKS TO MIRA AND HER MOM FOR GETTING US THE TOUR! :)


Then we went back to the School and got ready to present our credos.

Each person had 10 minutes to present their credo, any part of it that they wanted and in whatever way they wanted. The credos were so meaningful and I loved learning so much more about my friends that I've been living with for 4 months. The experience was amazing, and I loved every second of it.

After the final credo presentation, we went to a Board Member, Abigail's house for dinner. She invited us for dinner which was amazing, and I guess it's an SEGL tradition now :) Her house was amazing! Like definitely one of the coolest houses I've ever been in! She was SO nice and the food she made was unbelievable. I felt so at home there and it was a great bonding experience because alot of our SEGL community was there. We even played Apples to Apples (which I LOVE) but I fell asleep a few minutes  in because I was absolutely exhausted. I went to sleep at 2:30am last night (or this morning I guess) to work more on the credo, and that was surprisingly early for people in the house. Weird right?

Tomorrow we're packing in the morning to mid afternoon, and then going to the school for some secret stuff. I really hope it will be a good last night, and I know it will :)

I am officially an odd number.

So today is my birthday, and I am offically 17, an odd number. You may say I'm OCD or Superstitious, but odd numbers are evil. Please pray for me. With your help and prayers, I will survive the year. Overdramatic? Maybe.

Taken at 12:01 pm, 1st minute of being 17 :)

Today we went to the White House for a tour, but were there on the wrong day, so we're going tomorrow. It was all good though, because it was an adventure!

Then we came home, played brown squirrel and another game (SEGL and Kat things) then ate lunch. For my birthday, my Mom order Potbelly's for all of us which was awesome because I LOVE Potbellys! I will miss it so much! For those of you non-DCers, potbelly's is a sandwich shop :)

Then at 2, we presented our non-profit ideas to a panel. We were split into 3 groups, 2 groups of 5, 1 group of 6, and each panel had one Ashoka Youth Venture Rep. They were all so nice though so it really wasn't that bad or intimidating. My panel had Ashoka Rep. Rachel, Lucy (Our RA) and Charlotte (SEGL Admissions Officer).We presented our ideas, they asked some questions, got some feedback and moved on to the next person. Not so bad right?

Ashoka Youth Venture is the organization that starts our non-profits off with seed funding, up to $1000, so if all goes well, we'll each get seed funding :)

Then we chilled out, worked on credos, came home, worked on credos, took a power nap, ate, and are still working on credos. We also have to prep because we're presenting our Policy on Sex trafficking in Thailand to the Thailand Expert in the Office to Combat and Monitor Trafficking at the State Dept. tomorrow. I'm excited but also really nervous.

After we present the policy, we're going on a tour of the White House, then going back to the school to present our credos :)

So that was my first day as 17 :)

1 final down....2 to go

Today I had part of my chemistry final, which really wasn't that bad. We had the first part of it over the weekend, and that wasn't too bad either :)

But tomorrow I have my history and Pre-Calc finals! Yikes right?

I spent about 4 hours today studying for the pre-calc final at the congressional (a chill study space a few buildings down) and I still feel ish about it. I think the pre-calc final is the one I'm most worried about. I'm not as worried about history, but still un poquito (a little).

But ya....after tomorrow we have no more academics, which is bittersweet.

And only 2 days to go until I'm 17...An odd number :(
Anyone who knows me will tell you that odd numbers and I don't mix well. Car ride to the corn maze anyone? Ya...That's kind of a SEGL inside joke, but basically because the music in the car on the way to the corn maze was on an odd number I was little off... But don't worry, I was fine :) lol

Finals

All day today I've been trying (key word.) to study for finals, but I keep getting so distracted! I am super intent on studying right now though, I am going into super focus mode.

I still can't believe we have finals!

Our last day of classes was Friday, and we have all of our finals on Monday and Tuesday. From there, there's no more academics which is good :) But at the same time really sad :(

Almost 17...Where have the years gone?!?!?!

So it's my 17th birthday next week, Dec. 15th. I am not looking forward to it. I HATE odd numbers and being 17 will pretty much be the bane of my existence!

Plus, 16 is such a pleasant age. I like it, and I want to stay 16!

I guess I just have to remember that years are only man-made ideas anyways, they're not real.... just like permanent records.


P.S. In the past 3 days, I have gotten attacked by 2 trees (not just 1). Fortunately I lived both times, but my green puffy jacket was not that lucky. But, that's why G-d invented ducktape!

Da Credo!

So we've just been introduced to our last Capstone... The Credo.

It's basically a personal reflection of what we've learned, where we are, and how we will live our lives based on what we've learned and where we stand.

It's really tough. I have so many things going through my head that I don't really know where to start.

And the criteria for the credo is that it must be:

• brilliant
• insightful
• true

Quite some criteria huh?

I'm really excited because this is a great opportunity to reflect, but at the same time I feel overwhelmed because we have so many things to do these last couple weeks.

But I'm mainly excited :)

OY VEY!

We have finals next week and we have less than 2 weeks left! I can't believe it!!!!

Pepper v. United States !!!!

So this morning we got to go to a Supreme Court Case!!!!! The case was Pepper v. United States

      HUGE THANKS TO ALEX YOUNG'S DAD FOR GETTING US IN !!!!!!!!!!!!! 




What's the case about you ask? This! (from http://www.scotusblog.com/)

Issue: (1) Whether a federal district judge can consider a defendant’s post-sentencing rehabilitation as a permissible factor supporting a downward sentencing variance under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a); (2) whether as a sentencing consideration under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), post-sentencing rehabilitation should be treated the same as post-offense rehabilitation; and (3) when a district court judge is removed from resentencing a defendant after remand, and a new judge is assigned, is the new judge obligated under the doctrine of the “law of the case” to follow sentencing findings issued by the original judge that had been previously affirmed on appeal.

Plain English Issue: May a court consider a defendant’s post-sentencing rehabilitation as a ground for reducing his sentence below the federal sentencing guideline range? When a sentence is vacated on appeal, and a new judge is assigned on remand, must the new judge follow the prior district judge’s sentencing findings? (Kagan, J., recused).

The case was really interesting but I think being able to see/hear the oral arguments was so amazing! The Justices are harsh, they completely grill the lawyers, which on the one hand is entertaining and on the other is like, "oooooooohhh party foul." 

We recently wrote a paper for US history on a Supreme Court Case of our choosing, and mine was United States v. Stevens, a recent case, so it was interesting to see all of the people who I've researched alot about. Elana Kagan, the newest Justice, recused herself though because she was involved with this case in the Dept. of Justice before she was a Supreme Court Justice. But we got to see Sotomayor and everybody else! :)

Being there was honestly just the coolest feeling ever. The room was amazing and just everything was so cool.

One thing that was really funny though is that Justice Clarence Thomas, known for not asking any questions ever, was pretty much asleep laying down on his basically reclining chair the whole time, occasionally blowing bubbles with his gum. He seemed pretty chill....

OUR AMAZING WEEKEND: Part 2: AU, Talent Show, Hide/Seek and Ice Skating!

Saturday:
On Saturday a few of us went to American University for a tour. It seemed really cool. I'm not sure if I'd want to go there personally but the campus is amazing and it seems like a really cool school.

Then we came home and prepped for the Talent Show!

Then we actually went to the Talent Show!!! Which was at the school

The Talent Show was so much fun! Everyone did at least one thing and there were such amazing and funny acts. I had to do a skit/play with my spanish class called "El Delantal Blanco" and I also dougied to "Teach me how to factor" and sang a few Jewish Songs and a Christmas song with the other SEGL Jews! :)

After the actual talent show we had a giant dance party and it was amazing! We were at the school til like midnight :)

Sunday:
On Sunday, a few other people and I went to an exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery called "Hide/Seek" about how different artists in history portray different sexualities and how Homosexuality, Bisexuality etc. have been portrayed by different artists. It was a really amazing exhibit and the pictures were really powerful.

After the exhibit, we met the other SEGLets at an ice skating rink and went ice skating! Well....I watched, but it was still alot of fun! Ice skating's just not for me, but watching it is I guess! :)

On Sunday night, Arielle and Shayna's Moms came over and made Latkes! I was so happy about that because I missed Latkes so much and Sunday was my family's Chanukah party which I couldn't go to so I was really glad I still eat Latkes!


So basically it was an unbelievable weekend :)

OUR AMAZING WEEKEND: Part 1. Friday-Grand Strategy

Friday: Grand Strategy with Henry Pederson




Our Academic Dean/History Teacher/ coolest person ever's son, Henry, came in to do a presentation about Grand Strategy. Henry worked at SEGL last year. The issues that we talked about don't usually come up until Grad School, he said.

He talked to us about strategy, especially Grand Strategy for the U.S with the question in mind, "Should the US have a grand strategy, and if so, what should it be?"

We talked about the Social Contract (a philosophical sort of thing that we've talked about before) and how the ethical job of a state is to protect the rights from which the social contract is based, and basically, protect the social contract.

With a Social Contract, you have to give up certain rights to gain certain rights. For example, you have to give up the right to murder in order to have the right to not be murdered. Being a part of the US, we are part of a Social Contract.

We talked about how it's not always what's ethical, but what's less wrong, and what is part of our social contract. For example, something he said that was really interesting is that he would submit to us that the US not getting involved with the Rwandan Genocide was the ethical thing to do. Rwanda's not in our social contract, but getting involved risks American lives, which are the ethical responsibility for the US to protect. I thought that was really interesting. Maybe it's ethical to not get involved based on the Social Contract, but is it right not to get involved? Which one's less wrong? Those are questions that went through my head.

We talked about the different theories of international relations, such as Idealism/liberalism, Constructivism, and Realism. I feel like I'm an Idealist by nature, but in reality I'm more of a constructivist.

Game:
We played this really cool game that taught me alot, even in the first couple of minutes.
It was a kind of war simulation game, and playing it made me understand war so much better. I'm not going to explain the details of it, but it was a great simulation game. Henry told us that for every $1.50 we made in the game, he would pay us twice that (or something like that). The last round we agreed to not kill anyone else (for the game) but the second round, something killed someone (I was the one who got killed actually :( ) That person started a chain of aggression, and only 3 out of the 16 of us got any money, as opposed to if we actually kept peace, we all would've got money.

The simulation made me think alot about Israel. and how The fear of being the victim turns you into the perpetrator ( I am definitely coining that). This was demonstrated by the last round of the game. One girl got "tanks" to protect herself because she thought she was going to be killed, but because of that fear she ended up being the perpetrator who started the aggression.

Again, The fear of being the victim turns you into the perpetrator. 


We were faced with questions like, should the US:
torture, if only one hour of torture could save 100,000 people?
use nukes?
intervene in a conflict?
give foreign aid?
Support a dictator?
Hunt down Julian Assange?
etc. etc.

While ethical, these questions can only be answered accurately if we have a clear grand strategy.


This week we'll be continuing out discussion about the US' grand Strategy, and we'll be doing some cool things to figure it out :)

Math Lab!

So we're doing this really cool lab for math about Social Security!

I can't believe I'm excited about something that has to do with math, but hey! First time for everything!

It's a 5 day lab, and it's going to be super awesome!

Today we learned all of these fancy definition things that have to do with Social Security and I already feel so much more informed!

I'll keep you updated on what we're doing :)

Tom Adkins and our Non-Profits!

Our non-profits are coming along now...phew! Most of us have a pretty good idea of what we're doing. I think I'm personally pretty set for what I want to do, I just need to work out some logistics.

Preview of my non-profit (DA DA DAAAAAA):

It will be called Activism Consulting for Teens (ACT) and like the name implies, it will consult and mentor teens throughout Massachusetts on how to effectively support causes they care about. 

   But that's just part of it.....There's still more to come... !

Today Tom Adkins, Social Entrepreneur and founder of Open Organizer, which helps non-profits with technological things, came in to talk to us!

He talked to us his experience with non-profits and about what we need for our non-profits. He specifically talked alot about asking for help. He said that asking for help is crucial in creating and sustaining a successful Non-Profit Organization. He talked about the type of people we want to reach out to, such as the obvious family, friends, and mentors, but also people like key strategic supporters, fundraisers, and media personality. What he said really makes sense and I feel like it will really help me during the process of making my non-profit.

Alot of what he said seemed very familiar to me because I've worked with non-profits for a while, but having what they do kind of spelled out was really interesting to me.