Life as a Low-Income, First-Generation Student

When I first entered Pomona College I wasn't entirely sure what my identity as a first-generation, low-income student was. Most of the time at my somewhat elite high school, class was never brought up and was something I was always trying to suppress. I often felt ashamed when I couldn't afford the latest fashion trends, or left out when people would talk about the places they ...
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OMGGGG: You’ve Been Admitted!

This is a post for all of the no longer "prospective students" but  for the future attendees of some of the best and most elite colleges and universities in the country. I know you all are about to embark on a monthlong breakdown full of college admitted student day trips, getting to know new people and places, [insert college name here] Class of 2019 Facebook group notificatio...
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Hairitage: The Black Hair Conference

Last week I got the chance to participate in the 3rd annual Black Hair Conference here at Pomona College. The event, sponsored by the Pan African Student Association (PASA), started as a space to start dialogue about the politics of Black hair amongst the Black community from the Claremont Colleges and beyond. This year, the dinner/conference was at full capacity as hosts C...
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The Major Limbo

  This blog is for all my underclassmen, especially sophomores, who I know are going through the process of declaring a major, or for anyone else stuck with major decisions (that's punny). It is very hard for many people to choose their college major. Statistics show that 50%-70% of students change their majors at least once, and most will change majors a...
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My Time at Pomona

Since January is the month for reflection and starting new goals for the year, I have decided to reflect on my time at Pomona as a low-income, first-generation student. It's now been three years since my first year at Pomona and I feel extremely blessed for the time I have had here thus far. It's not every day that a girl from the south side of Chicago gets to go to an ...
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The Ups and Downs of Re-entry

re-en·try  /ˌrēˈentrē/ noun  1. reverse culture shock or the process of an individual re-assimilating to their home country after studying abroad It's been one week since I got back from one of the most incredible experiences of my life, and I have decided that I can never travel again because that was way too many hours of traveling...just kidding. Although I am still ...
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What It Means to be a Gladiator

Fresh from my trip to Italy, I would have to say Rome and Florence are shortly behind Barcelona on the list of my favorite cities visited during study abroad. Florence was just jaw-dropping. It was that type of antique beauty that you imagine when you think about Italy. From the Duomo to the Ponte Vecchio, it seemed like there was something beautiful on every corner. Not to...
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Is This Real Life?

I am pretty much done with my traveling in Spain and I thought would share some of my experiences from this beautiful country. The first place my program went to was Zamora and Toro. They are key places for wine making in Spain. We went to this really cool bodega (wine cellar) and found out how wine is fermented. The darker wines are fermented and stored for a longer period tha...
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¡Saludos! from Salamanca!

Hello everyone! My name is Ashley Land. I am a junior (cannot believe that) and media studies major at Pomona. I am from the windy city of Chicago, and as some of you may know, I am not at Pomona this semester but in the beautiful city of Salamanca in Spain. Choosing to study abroad was a very difficult decision for me. I thought it was going to be a horrible experience and...
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