Welcome to my online portfolio
This website is a bit of a work-in-progress at present, but feel free to poke around. I encourage you to visit my resume, as it contains a brief overview of who I am and what I have accomplished recently. If you prefer, you may also download my resume in Adobe PDF format.
Academics
I am currently a Senior at Lehigh University, finishing my studies with a major in Political Science, and a minor in Mass Communications. My studies these days tend towards conflict transformation, human rights, elections, democratization, propaganda, and global communications.
In the spring of 2009 I studied abroad in Durban, South Africa with the School for International Training (SIT) in their “Reconciliation and Development” program. The program is now entitled “Social and Political Transformation,” but I am happy to say that it does not seem that much has changed. The program focuses on experiential learning, or learning by doing. This method of teaching did wonders for my ability to understand the world around me, as I tend not to specialize in textbook based learning. I learned rudimentary isiZulu, and lived with Zulu and Coloured families, learning about their culture from the people who live it daily.
An aside: “Coloured” is a South African term meaning mixed race and it is not meant to be offensive, simply a statement of fact. While it was originally a word used to segregate a people during the Apartheid era, it has since been appropriated by them as an identity. Coloured peoples are an ethnic group unto themselves and have their own unique culture. The racial politics of South Africa are fascinating to me, and played into my research project described below.
While abroad I designed, researched, and wrote a 45 page Independent Study Project (ISP) on political violence in the KwaZulu-Natal Province as a comparative case study of the 2009 South African elections. I was one of the few researchers in the country cataloging violence before, during, and after the election.
My research was used in part for the book Zunami! The 2009 South African Elections (edited by Roger Southall & John Daniel).
More recently, I have researched and written two papers, one about the globalization of Sesame Street, and the other about the West’s role in the Rwandan Genocide. This past semester I also wrote for Lehigh University’s student-run newspaper, and you can find clippings in my portfolio.
Professional
Since I intend to graduate in May of 2010, I am currently seeking full-time employment.
My dream is to eventually work abroad, empowering young adults to overcome the forces working against them (like human rights violations). Somewhere along the line, I hope to attend the SIT Graduate Institute. I would likely obtain a Master of Arts in Conflict Transformation, specializing in Youth Program Leadership. Studying with SIT would do more than improve my credentials, it would provide me the ability to understand human rights from a very unique, and hands-on, perspective.
Before attending the School for International Training in Vermont, I hope to find a full-time job where I can learn hands-on about human rights, genocide, elections, youth empowerment. I appreciate all recommendations of nonprofit organizations, government entities or corporations I should look at for employment. I understand that with only an undergraduate degree I still have much to learn about my topics of interest, and I hope to find an organization that is willing to teach me so I can help others.
Contact Me
I can be reached at alex@votervictory.com. I am happy to answer any questions, comments or complaints you may have. I look forward to hearing from you!
You may also find me on the professional networking website LinkedIn.
Technology behind this website
I designed this website in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop; developed it by hand-coding, and imagined it during long hours in front of the computer. I am skilled at basic website development, but it is no longer my passion. I find social media fascinating, and through Twitter and other means I hope to educate the public about the topics that interest me.
This website has been tested in Safari and Firefox, I am attempting to fix it for Internet Explorer, but unfortunately that is easier said than done.