The mRAPP is the longest running social justice college program in the United States, and seeks to educate students by creating a space to talk about experiences and social justice issues. Following the Each One, Teach One Model, RAPP participants talk about their own experiences and knowledge regarding privilege, power, and oppression in order to build a better world. At the end of this 9 month intensive program, members have built a community to continue understanding systems of power and constructing a better tomorrow.
I first applied to RAPP after my first year at UC while volunteering at Crossroad Health Center. Crossroad is in the Over-the-Rhine district of Cincinnati. In recent years OTR has been associated with hip bars and high-end restaurants but it is still holds one of the poorest and disadvantaged populations in Cincinnati. I also saw the impact of high infant mortality rates on young mothers who would come to the clinic and would wonder how a city with so many hospitals and top-notch pediatric care facilities could also house one of the highest rates of infant mortality in the country. Something just didn't seem right and I knew it couldn't just be an individual's actions that solely controlled the outcome of their life; these experiences left me wondering what factors beyond environment could impact the course that one's life could take. RAPP seemed like an opportunity to understand social factors like race, gender, sex, sexuality, religion, and socioeconomic status among others that influence a person's identity.
I was excited and a bit nervous to be a part of RAPP XXXI; I was looking forward to the opportunity to learn from others and help create a space where they can share their experiences, but it knew that it would be a challenge for me to share and deconstruct my own. I do think that many of my identities give me a significant amount of privilege, and through discussions with my peers and a lot of personal reflection. I started realizing what skills and opportunities would allow me to use my power to make the world a better place for others. Through fourteen meetings and two retreats, I was able to get to know 35 other students and dive into their experiences as we all sought to figure out how our identities and worldviews were shaped. After the end of a three hour meeting, most of felt emotionally drained but every moment was worth it because we got to learn from one another's experiences in a way that we don't get to in most other spaces. Our activities ranged from whole group simulations of understanding privilege or coming out as transgender, to breaking into smaller groups to recognize why certain features are considered beautiful, to working individually to reflect on our own backgrounds and identities and how we can take what we've learned to make the world a better, more just place. I've never experienced a space where I could dig so deeply into the lives and experiences of others so openly, and just as freely share my own experiences with others.
The end of the program was bittersweet: we knew that we had shared an experience that many don't get to share and that we all wouldn't be together in such a capacity again, but it was exciting to know that we could carry the tools that we learned into the world to continue building a more just world.
i am beyond thankful for the opportunities granted to me by RAPP and the lessons I have learned from my fellow RAPPers. From here, I plan on carrying what I've learned by immersing myself in situations that are unfamiliar to continue to grow. I will also be working at Rees E. Price Academt this fall with a population that doesn't have access to sufficient healthcare, stable family life, reliable sources of nutritious foods, and many other barriers due to social constructs. I hope to play my part in using education to better the lives of these students and playing a part in them finding their own paths. The greatest gift that RAPP gave me is helping me find my voice and articulating my thoughts on social justice and equity, and I hope to continue to fight for what's right to make the world a better place.
I first applied to RAPP after my first year at UC while volunteering at Crossroad Health Center. Crossroad is in the Over-the-Rhine district of Cincinnati. In recent years OTR has been associated with hip bars and high-end restaurants but it is still holds one of the poorest and disadvantaged populations in Cincinnati. I also saw the impact of high infant mortality rates on young mothers who would come to the clinic and would wonder how a city with so many hospitals and top-notch pediatric care facilities could also house one of the highest rates of infant mortality in the country. Something just didn't seem right and I knew it couldn't just be an individual's actions that solely controlled the outcome of their life; these experiences left me wondering what factors beyond environment could impact the course that one's life could take. RAPP seemed like an opportunity to understand social factors like race, gender, sex, sexuality, religion, and socioeconomic status among others that influence a person's identity.
I was excited and a bit nervous to be a part of RAPP XXXI; I was looking forward to the opportunity to learn from others and help create a space where they can share their experiences, but it knew that it would be a challenge for me to share and deconstruct my own. I do think that many of my identities give me a significant amount of privilege, and through discussions with my peers and a lot of personal reflection. I started realizing what skills and opportunities would allow me to use my power to make the world a better place for others. Through fourteen meetings and two retreats, I was able to get to know 35 other students and dive into their experiences as we all sought to figure out how our identities and worldviews were shaped. After the end of a three hour meeting, most of felt emotionally drained but every moment was worth it because we got to learn from one another's experiences in a way that we don't get to in most other spaces. Our activities ranged from whole group simulations of understanding privilege or coming out as transgender, to breaking into smaller groups to recognize why certain features are considered beautiful, to working individually to reflect on our own backgrounds and identities and how we can take what we've learned to make the world a better, more just place. I've never experienced a space where I could dig so deeply into the lives and experiences of others so openly, and just as freely share my own experiences with others.
The end of the program was bittersweet: we knew that we had shared an experience that many don't get to share and that we all wouldn't be together in such a capacity again, but it was exciting to know that we could carry the tools that we learned into the world to continue building a more just world.
i am beyond thankful for the opportunities granted to me by RAPP and the lessons I have learned from my fellow RAPPers. From here, I plan on carrying what I've learned by immersing myself in situations that are unfamiliar to continue to grow. I will also be working at Rees E. Price Academt this fall with a population that doesn't have access to sufficient healthcare, stable family life, reliable sources of nutritious foods, and many other barriers due to social constructs. I hope to play my part in using education to better the lives of these students and playing a part in them finding their own paths. The greatest gift that RAPP gave me is helping me find my voice and articulating my thoughts on social justice and equity, and I hope to continue to fight for what's right to make the world a better place.