Student blends cultures

Priscilla Addison ’09 is an old soul, wise beyond her years, but she is also an international soul, born to travel the globe. She’s already got three continents under her belt and has plans to change the world.

Addison is a self-proclaimed nomad, and her homes have included Oklahoma, West Africa, New York, Switzerland and now central Pennsylvania. Some of those location changes were due to her father’s work with the World Health Organization, others were for school.

It was a savvy guidance counselor who pointed her toward Dickinson, and after researching the international-studies curriculum, Addison’s decision was made.

“I didn’t visit Dickinson before I decided to attend, so I came here completely open-minded,” she says. Not many people have the pluck to commit four years of their life to a school they’ve never seen, but this petite pistol has pluck to spare.

“I love to experience different cultures and places,” Addison shares, her eyes widening and the smile on her face spreading at the thought. “I love new and unexpected things. I love meeting people. I’m one of those people who will randomly talk to everyone on an airplane.”
A passion for travel, a love of people and a bubbly personality made Addison an ideal international-studies major.

While Addison enjoys the classes required for her major, such as macroeconomics, history and foreign policy, the class she has most enjoyed in her four semesters was African-American Authors with Lynn Johnson, instructor in English.

“It sounds like a cliché, but [Professor Johnson] taught me to think outside the box,” Addison says. “She transformed my whole writing outlook. She taught me originality. I enjoyed reading African American authors that I hadn’t been exposed to, and I loved every book she chose.”

But Addison doesn’t just spend her time with her nose stuck in a book.

“I’m a member of Dickinson Desi, the Indian dance group on campus,” Addison shares.

Did the fact that she’s not Indian suede her from joining? Not a chance.

“I just love to dance,” she declares. “I was the only African American, but that didn’t stop me. Now, there are so many different people, not just Indian students.”

Addison’s calendar also is filled with her responsibilities as a Learning Communities Coordinator (LCC). After her own great experience as a participant in a Learning Community (LC), she went through the application and interview process to be one of the program’s leaders.

The idea behind the program is for students and faculty members to interact outside of the typical classroom settings. In her LC, Class Matters, not only did they read a book in which the author studied two different daycares—one for high-income families and one for low-income families—they volunteered at two similar facilities.

“This allowed us to see it firsthand,” Addison explains.

As an LCC, Addison’s responsibilities revolve around such out-of-class experiences, including trips, films and speakers.

“When there’s an activity coming up,” she says, “I schedule the room, e-mail the students, bring food and clean up. I also meet with the LC professors and go over their syllabi, trips and ideas for the year.”

Through this experience, Addison has built great relationships with two professors in particular: Amy Farrell and Ashley Finley, associate professor of American studies and assistant professor of sociology respectively.

“Priscilla came highly recommended for the LCC position and after working with her I can understand why,” says Finley. “I was consistently impressed with not just her coordination efforts, but also the energetic and positive demeanor with which she set about to the tasks. 

“Running an LC is a good deal of extra work for everyone, students included,” Finley continues. “It was wonderful to have Priscilla as an ally in communicating with students and being a positive role model for the program.”

This fall, Addison is studying abroad in Toulouse, France. “I lived in Senegal, which is French-speaking, when I was 13 years old, but I didn’t start learning French until my second year there,” she explains. “Once I realized we were staying there for a while, I learned how to speak it but not how to write it. I want to go to France to see if I can deal with [the language] and work on my writing.”

As for post-graduation, there are two paths in particular that have caught Addison’s eye.

“I’d love to start a nonprofit organization,” she says. “I just want to help people and take it back to Africa. I’ve seen so much poverty. I’ve also thought about being an ambassador, but I’d be a very different one—hands on and out of the ordinary.”