Some Anticipated Questions:
How did this project originate?
During my last year at Whitman College, about a year ago, I applied for the Watson fellowship. The Watson provides a year long grant for a person to travel outside of the United States. The purpose of the travel is to become involved in, learn about, and engage with a topic that is your passion (To learn more about the Watson you can visit the website here). The fellowship is highly competitive; though I made it through the first round at my college, at the interview stage I was stopped short and was not sent on to the national interview stage.
Why are you choosing this method to fund your project?
It seems like the most feasible way to carry out this project is through the support of individuals who are invested in both my learning and the future of incarceration, prisons, and justice. These days it is very difficult to go on exploratory journeys as there are many structures and restraints that keep people from embarking on a sort of project like the one I am proposing. One of the largest constraints is generally funding, it is expensive to travel the world and to not explicitly be working but instead learning, discovering. Because of this there are very few monetary opportunities for funding a project like my own. Therefore I have determined that the way to stay most true to my project and also promote a network of support and interest is to attempt to fund this through individuals who believe in the value of knowing more about incarceration and criminal justice practices and the value of cross cultural learning.
Why not apply again for the Watson fellowship next year or for a different sort of fellowship or scholarship?
Unfortunately, the Watson is only for graduating seniors. This is why when I could apply I dedicated an immense amount of time and energy to my proposal because I wanted to try as hard as I could to make it. As far as other scholarships, I have certainly looked around to try to find something. I have thought about a Fulbright, but most of the other fellowships offered do not capture in any way as near what I would like to be doing. They add many restrictions, many making this a research endeavor where there is some sort of result. I think that it is important to be able to go on a journey of self-learning without many external pressures and requirements. I don’t think that every experience should have to be based on some prescribed end goal hence my attempt to complete this project through this method of support through friends, family, and beyond.
So when will you go to complete this project?
The plan essentially would be to start this project a year after when I would have done it had I been selected during college. So that means leaving in September or October of 2017 for the year long project.
Why not just do all of the donations in the same place?
I wanted to make it as easy as possible for those who wish to donate which means providing multiple ways to donate. Please donate in whatever way makes you most comfortable. I will be keeping the website updated to help people see how much of my goal has been reached!
What will happen with the money if you don’t make enough to even do one leg of the journey?
Though I hope that this situation does not arise, ethically I feel I must make sure that I consider this option. If this turned out to be the case I would donate the money to the Alliance for Safety and Justice which “aims to reduce incarceration and racial disparities in incarceration in states across the country, and replace mass incarceration with new safety priorities that prioritize prevention and protect low-income communities of color.” To read more about this project and why it is worthy of support please click here. So even though I would not be able to personally complete my Watson journey, people’s support would still go towards helping to reform and change our current criminal justice system.
During my last year at Whitman College, about a year ago, I applied for the Watson fellowship. The Watson provides a year long grant for a person to travel outside of the United States. The purpose of the travel is to become involved in, learn about, and engage with a topic that is your passion (To learn more about the Watson you can visit the website here). The fellowship is highly competitive; though I made it through the first round at my college, at the interview stage I was stopped short and was not sent on to the national interview stage.
Why are you choosing this method to fund your project?
It seems like the most feasible way to carry out this project is through the support of individuals who are invested in both my learning and the future of incarceration, prisons, and justice. These days it is very difficult to go on exploratory journeys as there are many structures and restraints that keep people from embarking on a sort of project like the one I am proposing. One of the largest constraints is generally funding, it is expensive to travel the world and to not explicitly be working but instead learning, discovering. Because of this there are very few monetary opportunities for funding a project like my own. Therefore I have determined that the way to stay most true to my project and also promote a network of support and interest is to attempt to fund this through individuals who believe in the value of knowing more about incarceration and criminal justice practices and the value of cross cultural learning.
Why not apply again for the Watson fellowship next year or for a different sort of fellowship or scholarship?
Unfortunately, the Watson is only for graduating seniors. This is why when I could apply I dedicated an immense amount of time and energy to my proposal because I wanted to try as hard as I could to make it. As far as other scholarships, I have certainly looked around to try to find something. I have thought about a Fulbright, but most of the other fellowships offered do not capture in any way as near what I would like to be doing. They add many restrictions, many making this a research endeavor where there is some sort of result. I think that it is important to be able to go on a journey of self-learning without many external pressures and requirements. I don’t think that every experience should have to be based on some prescribed end goal hence my attempt to complete this project through this method of support through friends, family, and beyond.
So when will you go to complete this project?
The plan essentially would be to start this project a year after when I would have done it had I been selected during college. So that means leaving in September or October of 2017 for the year long project.
Why not just do all of the donations in the same place?
I wanted to make it as easy as possible for those who wish to donate which means providing multiple ways to donate. Please donate in whatever way makes you most comfortable. I will be keeping the website updated to help people see how much of my goal has been reached!
What will happen with the money if you don’t make enough to even do one leg of the journey?
Though I hope that this situation does not arise, ethically I feel I must make sure that I consider this option. If this turned out to be the case I would donate the money to the Alliance for Safety and Justice which “aims to reduce incarceration and racial disparities in incarceration in states across the country, and replace mass incarceration with new safety priorities that prioritize prevention and protect low-income communities of color.” To read more about this project and why it is worthy of support please click here. So even though I would not be able to personally complete my Watson journey, people’s support would still go towards helping to reform and change our current criminal justice system.
CONTACT ME
If you have anymore questions, concerns, comments, suggestions, encouragement etc. concerning the project, I hope that you will contact me here.
GALLERY
Here are a few photos that capture just a fraction of what I have been doing over the past four years in order to engage and pursue my passion. Hope this gives you a glimpse into how much this project and topic means to me.