| Major: |
Economics; Sociology/Anthropology minor |
| Hometown: |
Born in Singapore, lived in Sri Lanka, now New York |
| Favorites: |
Cross-country skiing |
| One thing I am: |
Former editor-in-chief of Skin Deep magazine. |
I changed my major from sociology to economics because I wanted to know more about conservative viewpoints, to question my liberal viewpoints. As a liberal female, it’s challenging to be in these classes where the demographic differs considerably from that of the sociology department. I am just starting to realize my place as a woman in modern society, the challenges I’ll face outside Middlebury, where I might work in an office with similar demographics to those seen in the economics department.
It was when I attended the Charles Murray* lecture on the bell curve that I decided to pursue economics. I went up to him after the lecture and challenged his statements, using both my knowledge of economics and sociology. He failed to refute my argument. And I felt like, “Aha, this is what I’m going for.” I don’t want to attack people based on ideology; rather, I aim to understand conflicting viewpoints and to apply my knowledge in a constructive way.
* Murray is the coauthor of a controversial book about IQ and class.