Senior Retrospective | Ana Popkowski

Sitting down trying to write this reflection was possibly the hardest assignment that I have been given during my four years at Vassar because it forced me to grapple with all of my accomplishments, heartaches and disappointments throughout my time here, all while trying to do them all justice in a mere 800 words or fewer. After seeing 27 schools and being part of an extremely insular high school graduating class of 35 women, I pretty much did everything in my power to make August 18, 2006 come as quickly as possible because in my mind, that day marked my freedom. I thought that Vassar was the greatest place on earth because I only had to go to about two classes a day and make it to rugby practice by 3:30 p.m. I quickly realized, though, that Vassar provides its students with "free time" so that they will take full advantage of the clubs, orgs, intramurals, teams and positions that not only make the school successful, but its students post-graduation as well.

After bouncing around between three dorms, quitting the rugby team and not really knowing what the purpose of a student fellow was, by the end of freshman year I was a bit dazed and confused to say the least. Knowing that I came to Vassar to define my creative and analytic skills as well as immerse myself in the eye-opening experiences that my sheltered upbringing could not provide me with, I applied for the position of house fellow intern. I owe most of my happiness and success at Vassar to House Advisor and Assistant Director of Campus Activities Jocelyn Tejeda who went to bat for me and provided me with the opportunity to be a part of the Jewett House Team the following year.

Aside from becoming an expert slice and bake cookie maker, I got to work closely with Assistant Professors of English Eve Dunbar and Kiese Laymon to put together activities such as the "Gnome Game," a personal favorite, and the Seven Deadly Sins study break where we analyzed Bosch's "Garden of Earthly Delights," which is always a pleasure. However, what I really learned that year was that all of the professors at this school have extraordinary stories and histories that not only contribute to the successful standing of the school but to the creation of a well-informed, intellectually curious, and profoundly creative student body that is more than prepared to take on the challenges of the "real world."

My junior year I served as the Jewett House student sdvisor. Between the 3 a.m. phone calls from panicked student fellows and 6 a.m. study sessions that were always interrupted by the birds' chirping, I could not have gotten through serving as student advisor without Batia Epelbaum, who has become a great mentor and friend. Through all of these activities, as well as my position this year as the Class of 2010 representative to the Committee on College Life, I have become very closely acquainted with the inner workings of our school, and although there are things that I would still like to change, I can't imagine a place where I could have learned more about myself than I did at Vassar. I finally figured out what a media studies major is and does (sort of) and grew to realize that I could learn something from each and every one of my peers. Every day I found myself in awe and inspired by my friends who were All-Americans, started their own companies or had their films shown at festivals around the world, and I wouldn't have wanted to spend the past four years amongst any other group of people. Although there has been an inevitable ebb and flow of good and bad times, I have found a group of friends that I will be in touch with forever, and I have been given the tools to succeed in the unfamiliar post-graduation life.

Thank you Vassar for always pushing me. Sometimes the pushes made me cry, which was especially embarrassing during office hours, but they were always for the better.

To my friends along the way: Thank you for eating Bacios's mushroom and olive pizza covered in ranch with me, for the dance parties to trashy songs that never seem to end, being there for me during all-nighters in New Hackensack, picking me up after sliding through the grass (or pavement) covered in ketchup and chocolate sauce, spending hours with me in ACDC even though it was challenging at times, and most importantly for grounding me and always bringing me back. Thank you all for teaching me about second chances and new beginnings.

—Ana Popkowski will graduate with a degree in media studies.