When I first got to HGSE, I didn’t think I’d be qualified enough to speak at a Harvard conference, let alone three. That’s exactly how I started out my spring semester at HGSE, and how I’ll be ending it.
The first of the three conferences I was accepted to speak at was the Alumni of Color Conference held at HGSE. I, along with two other facilitators, led a session titled: Mixed: Exploring Racial Middle Ground. We engaged participants in a discussion about individuals and students who lie outside traditional racial categories – specifically multiracial women of color like myself and transracial adoptees like my other two co-facilitators. It was really liberating to be in a space where my knowledge and experiences were validated and valued, because people who came to my session were genuinely concerned and invested in the subject of multiraciality.
Inspired by this, I was invited to speak at the Let’s Talk Conference, also at HGSE (see picture below!). This conference was centered on the experiences and mental health of AAPI students, and my co-facilitator and I led a session titled: Bi/Multiraciality and Mental Health: Identity, Resilience, and Well-Being. We had the chance to lead the session twice – once for educators, and once for students. Many of the educators were not multiracial, and it was also validating to be leading a space with another multiracial woman of color to a room full of people who cared about our unique experiences. My favorite part was the student session – we loved working closely with students on what multiraciality was, what unique experiences multiracial people have, and how mental health for this population can be best supported.
The last conference I presented at is the Womxn of Color Symposium: Head, Heart, and Healing in late-April. In addition to being on the organizing team and my student group at HGSE co-sponsoring the symposium, I facilitated a session titled: Womxn of Color and Mental Health: Managing Anxiety/Anxiety Disorders. I’m excited to be in an affinity space with other women of color but specially to explore healing with other women of color – something I think I’ve been trying to explore and practice more throughout this year.
These conferences were liberating, empowering, challenging, and helped me grow personally and professionally this year.
Blog written by Maddie Alvendia. Photo provided by Maddie Alvendia.
Hi! My name is Maddie Alvendia and I am in the Learning and Teaching program here at HGSE graduating in May 2019. At HGSE, I am currently leading the MIXED (Multiracial Individuals eXchanging and Encouraging Dialogue) student group and am a coalition leader at HGSE for the university-wide Harvard Votes Challenge. I am originally from the suburbs of Chicago and attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where I graduated this past May with a degree in History. In addition to history, I’m also very interested in critical race theory, anti-racist and anti-oppressive pedagogy, and using these to dismantle oppressive education systems. Outside of HGSE, I’m volunteering with incarcerated youth, hope to work with a program that works with immigrant families in the Cambridge area, and also hope to work as a Research Assistant in the History department. In my free time I love to watch Netflix/Hulu and read, and my favorite foods are a whole wheat bagel with cream cheese and ramen. 🙂
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