Summer––undoubtedly the best part of the year––allows Fieldston students to relax, regain energy after a long and hard school year and explore new and burning passions.
The opportunities are expansive when it comes to how a student might choose to spend their summer, and Fieldston students cover a wide variety of experiences. Whether it be a summer internship, traveling to a new destination or spending time with family and friends, summer is the perfect time to explore new possibilities.
One such route taken by Olivia Suomi (V) was to do a college program.
“I chose to spend my summer at a medical program at Brown because of my long-standing interest in the medical field,” Suomi said. Suomi spent some of her days taking classes while the rest of her time was spent shadowing an anesthesiologist.
“I started the day going on rounds with the doctor where a group of medical professionals would compare treatment plans for the patients,” Suomi said. “Later in the day, we would go to surgeries, and I would watch the doctor administer anesthesia.” She was able to sit in on a hysterectomy, appendectomy and a brain surgery as part of her rounds.
“It was fascinating to learn about both the medical and personal side of being a doctor, like witnessing procedures and dealing with patients as well,” Suomi said. “It was really cool to be so close and observe the doctors working.”
Georgia Wallace (V) took an extremely different route and chose to spend her summer traveling. Wallace spent 4 weeks backpacking throughout the Alaskan back country with twelve students.
Wallace’s goal for the summer was self-growth, and when choosing a summer program, finding something that would push and challenge her was crucial. “I find that the times when I push myself are the most meaningful, and summer is that time grow,” Wallace said.
For one month, Wallace would wake up at 5:30 am, cook breakfast, pack up camp and hike––carrying everything on her back until her final destination that night. Each day, Wallace and her group would hike seven to ten miles and then unpack camp, eat dinner and go to bed awaiting another long day.
Wallace and the group had fully unplugged from society and had created their own community where they had just the basic necessities, fully satisfying them.
“It’s living simply, Wallace said. “I had everything I needed on my back. I never showered and honestly, it wasn’t that bad.”
By living simply, Wallace learned that there are certain things in life that are so beautiful they can fill you with enough joy and will last longer than any material item.
While Wallace challenged herself and grew in the great outdoors, Jahvani Kirtane (VI) dug into her passion for social justice in an internship with 18 other kids at the Ya-Ya Network (Youth Allies- Youth Activists) Summer Institute.
During her seven weeks at the program she learned about DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) issues, and she also was able to partner with organizations currently engaging in activism.
Kirtane took part in workshops centered around social justice in addition to visiting organizations engaging in similar issues. Kirtane was able to develop a relationship with these organizations so that she could continue partnering with them throughout the year.
Kirtane said, “I will be working with Ya-Ya in their year-long programming by continuing my training in being an Anti-Oppression Facilitator and participating in their campaign to bring restorative justice and counseling to public schools rather than spending money on policing with metal detectors.”
When Kirtane was asked to choose a favorite part of the program, she faced difficulty, but concluded that her co-workers were the people who truly made her summer. “The people I got to work with made my experience as impactful as it was,” Kirtane said. “At Ya-Ya, everyone (except one person) is a person of color.”
Kirtane continued to explain the rich diversity within the group of kids she worked with. Some were facing homelessness, in foster care, or had incarcerated family members. Others were victims of abuse, born into gangs, undocumented or not able to afford college. From the program, Kirtane was able to reflect on her privilege.
“My identifiers don’t always make it easy for me,” Kirtane said, “but it’s important that I understand the ways in which I am extremely privileged. Understanding this privilege has been critical for me, but doing something with it is even more important. After Ya-Ya, I am even more empowered to use my privilege and platform for good.” Through an inspiring seven weeks, Kirtane has only just begun her work in social justice and plans to continue contributing to this field.
