In honor of Oxy’s celebration of ‘Gaypril’ this campus celebrity is Priya Ghose, a sophomore Politics major from Palo Alto, California who hopes eventually to change the world as a LGBT activist!
Already, however, Priya is making her impact. She is the president of Vote for Equality, Oxy’s political gay rights club. “We go door-to-door canvassing every other week in support of gay marriage and the FAIR Act. VFE has been the single most important and impactful part of my Oxy experience. Canvassing has given me an unshakeable confidence and the ability to take to anyone.” Additionally, she has made considerable strong friendships through VFE.
Moreover, Priya serves as an RA in Sterns, which she stands by as the ‘Best Dorm in the World!’ “People might tell you otherwise…don’t listen…it’s just part of the conspiracy,” says Priya. She is a member of Zeta Tau Zeta fraternity and also works at the newly opened restaurant Isla, a Filipino on Eagle Rock Blvd. “It’s all kinds of delicious, and only a short walk from Oxy!”
And as for plans for the future, Priya has a lot lined up. For the summer she will be participating in Oxy’s Summer Research Program. She’ll be further researching the FAIR act to follow up her work with VFE. “The FAIR Act is a law that passed last year that requires California public schools to incorporate historical LGBT figures into their social studies curriculum. Unfortunately, the state didn’t give schools any further guidelines.” Most school districts, according to Ghose, feel they do not have the time or the finances are to make an effort to create inclusive instruction. Priya will be working with LAUSD Human Relations Coordinator, Judy Chiasson to help implement FAIR in LAUSD. Next year, she will also try to take the political world by storm by participating in Campaign Semester, on Krysten Simena’s ticket. Finally, she also plans to spend a semester studying abroad in Thailand as well.
While she will be taking, essentially, a year off from Oxy, it doesn’t mean that she won’t miss being here. “I adore Oxy,” she says, “I fell in love with this campus and everybody in it. I have met some beautiful souls here.”
And if you haven’t met the beautiful soul that is Priya Ghose, then you definitely will have to now!
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Oxy chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.