Questions for current/past Grinnellians

GrinGrad
Sat, 25 Sep 2010 17:00:18 +0000

Mkshort, I think it’s great that you’re taking a thoughtful look at political climate.

My story is that I grew up in a fairly conservative and somewhat religious household, but felt quite moderate in my political beliefs by the time I was at the end of high school. I was draw to Grinnell in part because I looked forward to the challenge of spending college soaking up and responding to more liberal viewpoints, and I hoped that I would come around to a firmer set of personal beliefs in the process.

At Grinnell, I was very involved on campus, but shied away from political activism, choosing at first to quietly attend church on my own at different congregations in town, attend political meetings on all sides of the spectrum (and there were Republicans on campus!), etc. I am sure I was feeling pretty liberal by the time I graduated, but I was not sure what that meant for how I wished to spend my life. The best gift I received from Grinnell was a fellowship after graduation that allowed me to spend a year teaching at a Catholic mission in an impoverished village in rural Africa. I suddenly had to confront how my shifting religious and political beliefs fit into a broader global perspective. All those late-night conversations amongst roommates and hallmates, the views voiced during the Iowa caucuses, the critical thinking in the classroom, contributed to my attempts to make sense out of what I was witnessing in Africa.

This is a cheesy, roundabout way of assuring you that Grinnell is an great place to learn how to think, and that-- if you go in with an open mind-- you will find value in that for the rest of your life.

And there is no better school to be at when the presidential primaries roll around. Every candidate visits Grinnell College or the town. In my time there, I saw Dean, Kucinich, Kerry, celebrities stumping for the politicians, etc. That’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

OK, ok, back to my own post-grad studies. I’m sure I sound like an admissions office affiliate by now. ;)