News!

Got great news this week! The University Fellowships Committee has awarded me $2500 for the Advanced Study Grant to put towards the Paraguay trip, AMAZING! I was expecting $2000 at the most so this is wonderful news. Combined with the fundraising and the film studies grant ($1000) I have met my fundraising need! It feels wonderful, and I am so grateful.

The next big thing to tackle before I lock myself in the library for finals is going through the Boston College Institutional Review Board (IRB) process. If you do research (or in my case make a documentary) that is affiliated with Boston College you must go through an intense review process to ensure that your research is ethically sound and will not be endangering or exploiting its subjects. I hope to finish my application and send it in today or tomorrow. The review process can take up to a month and I will not be awarded my grant money until my project has been approved by the review board.

FINALS ARE LOOMING! I have two 12 page papers due, one Monday (for my Human Rights class) and one Tuesday (for my Honors class), and then two intense finals next Friday (in U.S. Foreign Policy and International Studies). I've got lots of work to do. This Saturday some friends and I are going white-water rafting to get our crazy energy out before we lock ourselves in the library, it should be amazing! And I'll be home in a weekand a half! I can't believe the year has gone by so fast...

60 DAYS TILL I LEAVE FOR PARAGUAY!

~Elizabeth

Life is GOOD

I am having one of the best weeks I think I have ever had. First of all, I counted up the fundraising efforts again (not included some of the online donations - if you donated online PLEASE let me know) and the result is amazing. Through the kindness of family and friends I have raised $1881! WOW! That is incredible to me, especially as everyone is struggling with the economic downturn. The generocity is astounding, and I can't thank you enough.

Other amazing news, I am received an Advanced Study Grant from Boston College! I went through a very intense process to apply for the grant, and since I have received it will hopefully be granted approximately $2000 to apply towards my AMIGOS trip as well. With the ASG grant, in conjuction with the Jacques Salmanowitz grant I received from the Boston College Film Studies department (for $1000). I will use the grant money to help finance this trip (along with donations), and while in Paraguay make a short documentary about different forms of development aid, in particular the success of the Oxfam Model. The only things I have to wait on are finding out how much money I get from the University Fellowships Committee, and whether the San Pedro community will actually let me film a documentary.

Wonderful things that made this week the best ever:

Winning an ASG grant, winning the JESUIT OLYMPICS (competition between 10 teams of 5 students and one Jesuit), performing at the Boston College Arts Festival 2009 with the BC Swing Kids (one performance down, one to go), and it's spring. Life is good.

~Elizabeth

Vaccinations!

My mom is awesome and just scheduled an appointment at the Travel Clinic for me when I get home in May. I will be getting Typhoid Fever, a TB test, probably Yellow Fever, and possibly a Rabies vaccination. The Rabies vaccination really makes me laugh, just because that's not something you hear about everyday.
So yeah, I'm thinking about vaccinations right now :) I definitely don't want to get sick on the trip, and am going to be smart about what I eat and drink.

and

FUNDRAISING UPDATE:

$1262 RAISED!

THANK YOU and keep it coming :) The deadline is May 1st.

~Elizabeth