Finding a community that feels like family
“社区. 感觉就像一个家.”
That’s what senior Arham Hashmi, 23岁 will miss most about their time at Skidmore. Arham, who calls Pakistan home, majored in psychology and minored in 英语 with a focus 火博体育创意写作. During their four years at Skidmore, they served as head peer health educator (PHE), held leadership positions in several 学生俱乐部, and even 导演一部戏剧.
Arham began their college career in Skidmore's 第一年的经验 in London 程序. When they arrived in 萨拉托加温泉市, they were unsure what community they 将会是. An advisor suggested they become a 同伴健康教育者.
“I ended up sticking with it for a number of years because serving as a PHE was just this perfect mix of exploring my interests in mental health and organizing things - - - 在那里 为社区服务.”
Peer health educators, who must complete a detailed training course, help promote healthy choices and lifestyles on health-related topics, including mental health, bystander intervention, sexual health, nutrition and fitness, and relationships.
除了在 学生健康中心, where students can talk with peer counselors, as head peer educator Arham served as a mentor for PHE training classes and helped oversee the PHE 程序.
“My biggest takeaway as a 同伴健康教育者 is just to be passionate and vocal about a topic, and you'll get the space to explore it. 会有其他人的 对它也充满激情.”
Arham manifested this lesson in several leadership positions at Skidmore. 后 first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, Arham played an important role in reviving the 穆斯林学生协会. Arham and a fellow student also worked with 餐饮服务, President Marc Conner, and the Dean of Students’ Office to develop ways for halal meat to be served properly 在天空中ning hall — helping Muslim students keep with Islamic dietary guidelines.
Arham also served as president of two 学生俱乐部: the International Student Union (ISU) and Hayat, the College’s South Asian club.
“These two clubs were my first families at Skidmore and make me feel at home. 我发现 a lot of power and energy doing work for these communities which I identify with,” Arham说. Under their leadership, Hayat won the 学生会 Association’s Club of the Year Award, and ISU was shortlisted for the same award the following year.”
Arham’s favorite parts of being involved with Hayat were opportunities to enjoy the food they missed from home and to embrace vibrant South Asian wardrobe at club events. The ISU offers international students funded opportunities to visit different cities, and they have traveled to Boston and Washington, D.C.，与其他俱乐部成员一起. 另一个 event Arham enjoyed is the Global Queer Film Festival, which got started in the 2022-23 学年.
“We dug into the research and ended up choosing films from around the world that told queer stories, and we screened them over one weekend. I think that's going to become 一年一度的活动!”
Arham also dabbled in theater at Skidmore. In one class, students read a South Asian play centered on queer characters. 戏剧助理教授 丹尼斯Schebetta encouraged them to turn the scene into a full production. 亚罕同意了，尽管他们 lack of significant theater experience, and 这出戏 是在2022年春天上演的.
“It was just so rewarding to see a story about my experiences on stage, as Skidmore community members showed up to listen to it and to hear it.”
So, what does Arham think about their Skidmore years?
“I’ve become a lot more vocal, a lot more aware of my needs, and a lot more confident 在要求他们得到满足. I’m also a lot more comfortable with my origins and 我的背景. I'm the most South Asian I’ve ever felt, and some of that has been because of the work and the activism I’ve been involved in.”
Now that they’re graduating, Arham plans on a trip home to Pakistan before returning to the United States for a temporary position as a 认知心理学 teaching assistant with Johns Hopkins University followed by a longer role as a justice-involved peer specialist in New York City. They also hope to return to their goals of 继续进修 screenwriting, directing, and mental health counseling.