POUDRE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION SCHOLARSHIP Emma Reust The educational experience that made the most impact on my life

was an advisory class that I took when I was a junior. At my school advisory classes are called crew and are based around a theme that is studied for a year. The name of that crew was Multicultural and Social Justice and was based around the theory of critical multicultural education. Through participation in that crew I learned how to recognize, analyze and develop ways to address and decrease social inequities including racism, sexism, homophobia and ablism. I also learned about verbal and nonverbal oppression and the many forms it can take. I realized that oppression can come from judgments based on stereotypes around a persons name, place of birth, appearance, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, education, religion, income and many other personal qualities. The class also showed me how to be a role model in school by intervening when I see an interaction that is a form of oppression or injustice without causing conflict. An example of this is would be speaking up and saying thats not okay when someone makes a racist or sexist joke in conversation. The most impactful realization I took away from this class was how the media displays oppression, inequities and stereotypes and how much of that we subconsciously absorb. This year long class helped me to grow as a person more than any other educational experience in my life. I feel I am more aware of social injustice, both in the media and in my own community because of this class. I also feel I have the basic skills to do something when I see an injustice occurring. I learned that there are many ways that I can help my community, both by volunteering and by being a role model in my school through this class.