Johandra, Class of 2012

Johandra graduated at the top of her class and is currently studying International Relations at FIU. She recently studied in France and we asked her to share her experience with us. Here's what she said.


Study abroad is not only about learning in the academic sense, but more about finding yourself and making your own history. I spent July 2013 in France on a study abroad program through FIU's Honors College that focused on art, war, and human rights. I lived in Paris, where I walked the same streets and buildings as kings and angry revolutionaries who developed the modern notions of liberty and equality. I researched a World War II pilot and stood next to his grave at the Normandy American Cemetery as I told my classmates about his sacrifice to his nation. With two friends, we researched places dedicated to the defense of human rights along a Paris metro line. As an international relations student, my experiences taught me the importance of government in a society and the measures it will take to defend its ideals. On a personal level, I learned that I must not forget that history is not a series of passive events but is actively shaped by individuals and, as Joseph Weismann, a survivor of the Holocaust whom I had the honor of meeting said, to never accept the unacceptable.
Next May, I will embark on a second study abroad adventure to Italy, where I will analyze the effects of classical Rome and the Renaissance on the contemporary world and once again, discover more of myself.

This is Jojo again. She sent me a recent picture of her in Rome (May 2014)