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Macaulay Honors College
at Baruch, Spring 2013Professor Els de Graauw
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Jamaican Timeline
Vickerman, Milton. “Chapter 7- Jamaicans: Balancing Race and Ethnicity.” New Immigrants in New York. Edited by Nancy Foner. pp. 201-228. New York: Columbia UP, 1987.
Gaining Skills, Tackling Tedium, Changing Minds
Being a mathematician and scientist, I initially didn’t have any interest in this course, because it didn’t challenge or reinforce most of the skills required to be those two things. I never liked humanities courses, or anything titled “Interdisciplinary.” But having taken this course I can say that I actually enjoyed certain aspects of it and that I did learn new skills that I wouldn’t have in a math or science course, though they weren’t many and they weren’t too significant. Very basic elements of website design and excel skills are the two practical ones I learned in this course. Practical knowledge gained would be that of past immigration laws which allowed the demography of New York City to take its current form, and current immigration laws which affect Americans today, such as the Dream Act, which affects some of my friends. The majority of the course however, based itself upon the history of immigration of NYC, facts which I believe are mostly impractical but are interesting to know. Nonetheless, as annoyingly tedious as the coursework was (case in point – writing this post), it had its fun points, such as the walking tours, humorous class discussions, and class videos and tangents which used up class time.
The assignments themselves were, again, tedious, especially the statistical profile. However, I found the personal essay and interview valuable, for they prompted me to look deeper into my own roots, and why my parents decided to leave Guyana. Learning this has given me a more appreciate perspective of the fact that I was born in America and did not ever have to suffer the prevalent evils of third-world countries. I believe this is something many American-born citizens take for granted. But they cannot blamed for a lack of appreciation of current blessings after growing up in a profit-driven culture where the most exorbitant luxury is never enough and always precedes even greater future luxuries, which is clearly seen, for example, in the evolution of smartphones and cars.
So, I guess in the larger picture I can say this class has been beneficial to my perspective of life and intellectual well-being.
A Stereotypical Jew
Jackie in Baltimore, summer 2012
My name is Jackie Bierman and I am a freshman here in Macaulay at Baruch. I decided to call my blog a “stereotypical Jew” because I don’t believe in stereotypes, and I think each person is a world of himself. I appear to be a stereotypical Jew, but I never identified myself as Jewish growing up. I live in New Rochelle and I commute to Baruch. I went to New Rochelle High School, which I loved, and I actually graduated early and took my senior year to go to Israel for the year. I love Hebrew and I am thinking of majoring in it. I plan on pursuing both tennis and photography. I want to be a teacher when I’m older.
A Second-Generation Guyanese-American
Michael interning at Mount Sinai Hospital
My name is Michael James Jagdharry. I’m a freshman in the Macaulay Honors Program and I plan to major in math and become an actuary. I graduated from the High School for Mathematics, Science, and Engineering at the City College of New York (HSMSE@CCNY) last year. My hobbies are handball, guitar, and longboarding. I’m a simple guy that enjoys the simple things in life. In my free time, I watch shows on netflix, usually Supernatural or an anime (currently watching Mushi-shi). I used to be a big anime and video game person. Like ITF Ben, The Legend of Zelda is my favorite video game franchise. I’d like to somehow make the world a better place, on the macro-level, but currently I have no idea on how to go about doing that.
Two Cubans, a Pole, and an American Walk into a Wedding Hall…
Ben in Jerusalem, Israel, May 2012
Two Cubans, a Pole, and an American walk into a wedding hall… Sounds like the start of a joke, doesn’t it? My name is Ben Zeitz, and the above sentence isn’t the start of a joke, but rather how my parents’ wedding began.
I am a third-generation Jewish-American and a descendent of Germans, Poles, and Cubans. This unusual mix can be a cause for confusion at our family holidays — does anyone else eat tamales at their Thanksgiving dinner?
However, on the inside, I am your average American 20-year-old. I love sports, watching television, and reading.
The Thrill of the Ride to Somewhere…
I’m Nomi Brodie, a freshman at Baruch College, and I am heading someplace great. I’m not quite sure where that is yet, all I know is that its pretty awesome over there, and I’m excited. I’ll tell you all about it with time. Be patient.
Nomi in her graduation picture
I live in Monsey, NY and I commute to Baruch College every single day.
I am majoring in Biological Sciences, and I am pre-graduate school, either PA school or pharmacy school. As I said, I really don’t know where I’ll end up. I am a perfectionist, and I have lots of friends. I also spend a lot of time studying and doing homework. I take things a bit too seriously, and I don’t give up, ever, until I succeed (everyone hates playing monopoly with me).
