April L. Graham FP’18
“The independent research I conducted on the black-house community in Chicago for my senior thesis through Lynk funding helped me see that I could manage a research project from beginning to end.”
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Academic focus: black geographies (self-designed major)
Campus involvement: As the president of the Frances Perkins Scholars Association from 2016 to 2017, I was the official representative and spokesperson for 95 nontraditional age students. I partnered with the College to advocate for the needs of Frances Perkins scholars while executing provisions of the Frances Perkins Scholar Association constitution. I presided over bi-weekly association meetings and oversaw executive board duties and responsibilities. I also built and managed FranPedia, an online wiki resource website specifically for the FP community, to centralize communication. I have also worked as a Frances Perkins fellow in the admission office for the last two years aiding in planning special admission events and corresponding with prospective FP students.
Proudest accomplishments at Mount Holyoke: Completing my senior thesis, working as a research and teaching assistant for Preston Smith (chair of Africana studies) and our class, Black Metropolis. And presenting my undergraduate research at Harvard University and the American Association of Geographers Conference in New Orleans.
How a close connection with a faculty member has shaped you: I have so many close connections with quite a few faculty members. However, the one that stands out the most is by far Preston Smith. He has become such a huge staple in my life as a father figure, mentor, friend, colleague, sparring partner, my support system and someone that has helped mold me into the woman and scholar that I’ve always wanted to be. It has been an honor to work for and alongside of him and I’m beyond privileged to continue to share a space with such a brilliant mind and nurturing spirit. When my dog of 16 years, Whitney, died, Preston was there. When my I got the news that my beloved grandfather passed away, Preston lifted me up — literally — when I fell to the ground. He catches me when I fall, which speaks to the connections that students develop with their professors and the unwavering personal and academic support we receive as a result of those bonds.
Best takeaway from internship or research experiences: The independent research I conducted on the black-house community in Chicago for my senior thesis through Lynk funding helped me see that I could manage a research project from beginning to end. It was a grueling process that I liken to giving birth due to the laborious process that goes into bringing forth a creative work that you nurture and love for months while it grows into something that goes through so many changes but comes out exactly the way it was intended.
Favorite Five College experience: Taking classes at Hampshire College. In many ways, I found my tribe at Hampshire and felt a sense of freedom and release on that campus that was extremely cathartic. There is an ease at Hampshire that was welcoming to my soul and I love their approach to curriculum and their students. Also, working with Junko Oba and Ashley Smith — both professors at Hampshire — that served on my thesis committee. I took classes with both of them and they ultimately became my mentors and friends.
How Mount Holyoke has shaped your global outlook: Mount Holyoke pushed me to think beyond my own backyard. I interacted and became friends with people that I would have never crossed paths with from all over the world. Through these exchanges, I’ve realized the interdependence that our choices, thoughts, behaviors and footprints have on everyone and everything on this planet. It is penetrable to the soul when you connect with someone from the opposite side of the world that shares a similar lived experience as you. I found sisters from various parts of the world that I didn’t know I had, but I’m glad I found them and that they located me.
Future plans: I plan to apply to graduate school and enroll in a program where I can expand on my research on black geographies, the black-house community in Chicago, and the geographies of the black post-civil rights generation. I will become a collegiate educator in order to further such studies. I will also fly back home to Chicago and set my graduation cap on my grandfather's grave and say, “Grandaddy, we did it!”
I say this all the time, but it rings so true: I walk tall knowing that instead of settling for a seat at the table, Mount Holyoke prepared me to build the table. I am the architect of my life and I’m ready to sketch out and build the next table.