Podcasts
This past semester, I took a class in podcasting and sound production at the University of Virginia taught by renowned podcast producer, Elliot Majerczyk. Under Professor Majerczyk's tutelage, I worked in the Robertson Media Center sound studio to interview participants before editing and combining interview content using the applications Hindenburg Pro and Audacity. I edited and produced a total of four short podcasts for this class, and have since created several of my own podcast episodes.
Photography
I was gifted a canon camera from my parents on my 16th birthday. Since then, I have dragged my Rebel T7 camera with me across the country to attend university and across the world in my many travels. As much as I love to express myself through words, photography captures life through color, lighting and contrast in a way that words often cannot. I hope this gallery gives you a glimpse into how I see the beautiful world around me.
The Cavalier Daily
As both a student and a journalist, strictly following the story and disregarding my own thoughts on the issues that directly impact myself and my community can be quite difficult. But I quickly learned that there is power in the questions I ask, the angles I share and the stories I tell. With the current polarized political culture and misinformation running rampant, I know that now more than ever, voicing the truth is far more powerful than voicing an opinion on it... I can now confidently say that I am a writer — writing is what I’m good at and I intend to keep writing until my hands can no longer hold a pen or press the buttons on a keyboard. And at that point, I will switch to voice typing.
U.Va. Health suspended gender-affirming care Jan. 31 in response to both President Donald Trump’s Jan. 28 executive order and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares’ memo threatening the University with federal funding cuts if U.Va. Health continued to provide gender-affirming care for patients age 18 and below. But after a federal judge blocked Trump’s order for 14 days, U.Va. Health quickly moved to reinstate the practice.
Over 200 students whose status was removed from SEVIS successfully sued the Trump administration in recent weeks for failure to uphold the Due Process Clause...The DOJ reversed the cancellation of over 1,200 student visas Friday in response to the judicial backlash. According to an article from Politico, the termination of SEVIS records of international students based on misdemeanor charges has been temporarily halted as the Immigration and Customs Enforcement works on a new policy regarding international student visas.
_JPG.jpg)
Ahead of this year’s presidential election, many out-of-state students faced barriers in receiving and submitting absentee ballots in time to vote. Varying state laws regarding notarization and voter registration procedure, as well as delays in approval of mail-in ballot requests, sparked confusion and frustration as several students feared their votes would not be counted.
Morgan Bettinger, Class of 2021 College alumna, settled a lawsuit against the University after being sanctioned by the University Judiciary Committee for a 2020 comment concerning Black Lives Matter protestors blocking traffic in downtown Charlottesville. The lawsuit alleged that President Jim Ryan, the University Board of Visitors and former Dean of Students Allen Groves violated her free speech and due process rights by permitting and assisting in her sanctions.
IRIS Magazine
For most of my life, losing weight has been all I’ve wanted. To be skinny and beautiful and happy — if I could just lose weight, the rest would come along with it. I didn’t have to lose the weight to find the flaws in my logic. Skinny or not, I am beautiful. I am still that blonde bobbed giggly goofball but with a few extra inches, many extra pounds and ten years spent learning that I had it right the first time…I deserve to love myself. I am fat, but I am also beautiful, smart, compassionate, confident, and stronger than anyone who looks at me with judgment will ever know.
I used to think that college would be this brilliant learning experience that would miraculously turn me from child to adult. I thought I’d go into college as a pile of play dough and come out a Michaelangelo sculpture. As amazing as I am, I am no Michaelangelo sculpture. So now my resting theory/last hope is that college does not in fact teach you everything, and the old adage is true: experience is the best teacher... I don't know that I'll ever be ready for adulthood or the working world but I know that whether I like it or not, in eight short months I will be a college graduate living in the real world. You better believe I’m going to make the best of it.
Now, he has finally reached his Paradise Falls and is seated beside his Kitty Cat. My grandparents’ adventure book is filled with many wonderful memories. I imagine them up above reviewing the many pages of their life stories and planning their next journey. This month marked 70 years of marriage and I am very happy to know that my grandparents are together once more. I hope there is water in heaven. A nice lake or river for Opah to fish on and Nana to paint. And a fishing boat for my Opah to continue his adventures until we can join them again.
What happens to a world divided,
When family is not a factor,
When we are not legally bound,
When there is no love tying us together?
​
I see more and more yard signs
Every time I leave my home
There are dozens to a lawn.
Neighborhoods divided
By stretches of red and blue.
​
If we are not careful,
We will live in a world divided.
And we will all stand alone. ​
​