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Mary Thao is a rising senior at Marquette University majoring in Cognitive Science. As a first-generation, Hmong American college student, she has worked as a student laboratory research assistant in the Department for Clinical Laboratory Science (CLS) and as a program assistant for Marquette\u2019s Center for Community Center (CCS). With a wide range of interests from her past experiences, she strives to become more holistic and well-rounded with professional aspirations in Public\/Global Health, bioethics, and social justice. This summer, Mary interned at the USDA Foreign Agricultural Services – Office of Capacity Building and Development (OCBD) in the Development of Resources and Disaster Assistance (DRDA) division.<\/p>\n
Why is public service important to you?<\/b><\/p>\n How has your focus on AANHPI issues changed or developed through interning at CAPAL?<\/b><\/p>\n Throughout my entire life,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0have always felt like the middleman that was never truly spoken about unless my identity represented the majority in a room or the \u201ctopic of the day.\u201d With this,\u00a0I<\/span>have grown up always championing myself as a Hmong American who fought for issues pertinent specifically for my culture. Through CAPAL,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0am able to understand and analyze my identity as an Asian American within society to comprehend the power of collaboration. Just from these few weeks of coming to DC,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0am already immersed in an environment of like-minded people who hold an awareness that\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0do not have. Some understand the nature of today\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0politics. Others know the untold history of Asian Americans. And there\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0those who are simply more cognizant on life (aka more \u201cwoke\u201d). In summary,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0have begun to perceive the importance of working together with people whose identities are not exactly like mine, so that we all can all attain our goals. With this,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0strive to become more well-rounded while learning about a bunch of different issues and solutions.<\/p>\n What do you think you can bring back to your community from your internship and being a part of CAPAL?<\/b><\/p>\n As a first-generation, Hmong American woman,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0want to bring back my experiences to my community whether it is my family, my school, the city of Milwaukee, or even those who are not directly affiliated with me.\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hold some privileges that allow me the possibility in joining my amazing CAPAL cohort in the bustling world of Washington DC. Unfortunately, such a unique reality cannot apply for everyone, so the knowledge\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0gain from this eye-opening experience will be used as a narrative of exploration.\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope that my experiences show my community another perspective of delving into unknown fields within unknown places. While interning at the USDA Foreign Agricultural Services, listening to various experts at the Washington Leadership Program, and discussing professional yet also personal topics among my peers,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to hone my skills about knowledge attainment, cultural competency, and political advocacy to apply these within my community. Yet\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0also want to introduce my story to those in DC and those who don\u2019t know me, so that these groups can be a part of my community too. Through storytelling and exchanging knowledge,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to influence others to follow their curiosities, whether that be specifically applying for CAPAL or generally fulfilling their life aspirations without restraint.<\/p>\n What is\u00a0something that people usually don\u2019t expect or know about you?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n Contrary to my quiet perhaps even timid demeanor,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0love public speaking \u2013 but only if\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0am super prepared!<\/p>\n What are you most excited to do in Washington DC this summer?<\/b><\/p>\n I<\/span>\u00a0love picking people\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0brains! DC is a great place to meet different people from all parts of the country, so\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to meet new people and visit new places. During these adventures,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to learn more about their interests, what motivations drive them into doing what they do, and how they feel about super deep, ambiguous life topics. A sense of uninhibited vulnerability always leads to the greatest of friendships!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mary Thao is a rising senior at Marquette University majoring in Cognitive Science. As a first-generation, Hmong American college student, she has worked as a student laboratory research assistant … Continue reading CAPAL Intern Spotlight Mary Thao ’19<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":15186,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15173"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15173"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15173\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15191,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15173\/revisions\/15191"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15186"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n\n\n\nI<\/span>\u00a0have heard numerous statements blame \u201cthe system\u201d or \u201csociety\u201d for oppression, corruption, inequality, racism, elitism, etc\u2026The list continues endlessly to a point where \u201cthe system\/society\u201d almost appears as an opposing person who has become the scapegoat of these disastrous dilemmas. Yet, we all are a part of the \u201csystem,\u201d so through public service,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to take a step further in my role that may have perpetuated ill will if\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0didn\u2019t do anything.\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to represent the unheard voices and bridge the socially constructed gap between various mindsets. Public service is vital for me because it sets the backbone for \u201cthe system,\u201d which\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0believe has its ebbs and flows but can still veer towards a side of optimism and goodwill for all. By being an active, conscientious citizen who can capture the realities and perspectives of many people,\u00a0I<\/span>\u00a0hope to collaborate with other eager peers in ensuring the equality and equity of everyone. Only through this can the plethora of roles within public service be most effective and efficient.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.capal.org\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/42675004_10212639984260204_5832505750483632128_o-1024x768.jpg\")
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<\/p>\nMeet all of our CAPAL Scholars & Interns\u00a0here.<\/a><\/h3>\n
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\u00a0<\/em>Sukhanjot (Sukhi) Kaur is a rising senior at the University of Nevada, Reno majoring in Human Development and Family Studies with a minor in Accounting.\u00a0She is currently deciding between a master\u2019s in higher education and political science, but hopes to go on to work for a nonprofit focusing on women and education after graduation. Sukhi served as the Service Officer for Kappa Delta Chi Sorority, Inc. the past year. She was greatly exposed to Sikh American representation through her involvement in with the Sikh community in Nevada and having grown up in Punjab until early childhood. Sukhi hopes to promote Sikh American leadership with her commitments and organize more involvement in the Sikh American youth in her community.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"