And the semester begins…

As I sit here writing this, I like to think that I have graduated from the “tourist phase” of my semester here in DC. I now ride my bike to work in my converse, with my pants tucked into my socks. I (think) I have mastered the art of business casual, and I can use street signs, so I don’t get lost on runs, although let’s be real, I haven’t traveled off the beaten path.

My name is Brenna Cowardin and I am a sophomore in the William & Mary DC semester program. I think applying for this program was one of the most spontaneous things I’ve done. I saw the email about the fall 2016 program over winter break last year, and the theme, “Nation Building and Conflict Resolution in South Asia” intrigued me. I’ve worked with the school system in my hometown and interacted with many refugee families. This experience has, in the best clique way, ignited a passion in me, and I hope to find an eventual career in refugee resettlement or something else along those lines, so the conflict resolution aspect of the program’s theme drew me in. I also always thought I would end up going to college in the city. Williamsburg, despite it’s many quaint idiosyncrasies, is not “the city.” So the DC semester program seemed like a great opportunity to explore what city life had to offer me.

So here I am.  I’m working with the Peace Corps, living in the nicest apartment I will ever live in (and I mean literally ever), and eating way too much really good food. This semester I hope to give insight to the life of the DC semester student with small vignettes from each of the students in the program.

Stay tuned, folks.

-Brenna Cowardin ’19