by Jeanice Brad, photographed by Erica Jackson
Jason chose Columbia because he wanted to come back home. The New York native, who grew up in the Bronx, decided to attend GS after he graduated from the Miami-Dade College Honors program in Fall 2002. When Jason first arrived he realized that GS was, “a smaller school within Columbia, diverse in age and nationality. When I went to the orientation, [the atmosphere] was positive. I felt at home within GS.”
When asked if he feels distinct as a member of GS he answers, “Yes and no. I was looking at the other students who participated in the Faces of GS and I realized that GS students are becoming younger and younger. Younger GS students have an easier time relating to [other students on campus]. There can seem like a divide between younger and older GS students. And some of us have families and children with very little time to become involved socially.”
Jason, who will graduate this summer with a degree in Political Science (his minor is English Literature), was able to attend Columbia with the help of a full scholarship from the Program of Academic Leadership and Service (PALS). Through PALS he participates in its “No Limits” program, which helps city high school seniors become college bound. His participation in the annual program only hints at Jason’s passion for community service. He has also worked with Columbia’s Human Rights Law Review in El Salvador with the Agency for Self Suffiency, and as a Student for Peaceful Coexistence in Israel/Palestine. Jason admits that because of all of his community service endeavors, as well as working 25-30 hours a week as a research assistant for the Institute of Latin American Studies, he has struggled to focus on academics.
Of his early days at GS, Jason says, “I came in confident. I took on too much and didn’t prioritize. I needed to manage my classes, working and community service.” His efforts paid off when Jason made the Dean’s list last semester.
Jason’s time at GS has helped him overcome other challenges too, “I’ve become better at articulating myself. I’ve always had a general idea of what I wanted to do, but my goals have become more clear from being here. I’ve grown from all of the ups and downs I’ve had here. It hasn’t been all peachy keen, but I’ve grown from my mistakes.”
Jason says he would only recommend GS to people who are “willing to commit 110%. Not to those who want to ‘buy’ a Columbia degree. That’s just not going to happen. You have to work your ass off.”
Jason would like there to be a “joint orientation day” between GS and the other colleges on campus. He feels that this would create a larger awareness of GS, helping to unify Columbia schools as a whole. He’d also like to see more pre-professional advisement for GS students, such as pre-law and pre-med career counseling. “Most of that is more readily available to CC students. I once went to a pre-law seminar but was told I wasn’t eligible to sit in because I was a GS student.” Jason plans to attend the University of Southern California law school in the fall.
One of Jason’s most memorable moments came in the Columbia gym with students after the “No Limits” program on April 1. “We were playing basketball and talking about financial aid applications for college.” He saw the symbolism in this encounter, because the students he had been mentoring were going to be graduating from high school, and he was going to be graduating from Columbia, and moving on to other things. “It made me realize that I was approaching the end of my time here. It felt like the culmination of everything that I worked for.”
Though his involvement with PALS and “No Limits” is ending, Jason remains passionate about helping others. Once he becomes a lawyer, he plans on focusing on human rights and public interest law, particularly child advocacy. Having grown up in various group homes in New York City, he’s come in contact with many children who are virtually ignored by the very systems created to protect them. In addition to helping children, Jason wants to become an advocate for those who may not have a voice to speak for themselves.
His time here and all of his endeavors have only made his principles stronger, and his goals for the future more clear. “My experience here has been positive. Everything happens for a reason. Even the set backs [I’ve had] did more for me in the long run than not being challenged at all.”
His advice to incoming students is “Columbia is like basketball,” he smiles, realizing he is holding a basketball, “you'd better bring it strong or don’t bring it at all.”
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