Student Spotlight Brenna Whitten
Name: Brenna Whitten
Majors and Minors: Global Studies, French, Political Science with minors in National Security Studies
Hometown: Elkhorn, Nebraska
Year at UNL: 4th
Favorite book and why: One of my favorite fiction books is All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir. The book follows two friends, both from immigrant families. I love this book because it doesn’t romanticize American high school as many young adult books do. This book show cases realities that many young people have experienced growing up in the United States. It is beautifully written and the characters are vividly fleshed out. I read this book two years ago and it has continued to stick with me.
One of my favorite non-fiction books is Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green. I love this book because it is an accessible and digestible introduction to global health, global health disparities and injustice, and viral diseases such as tuberculosis. I absolutely flew through this book and as a global studies major, I reference it quite often.
Favorite movie and why: My favorite movie is 13 Going on 30! It reminds me to go through life wearing clothes that make me happy, seeing the beauty of the community I live in, and holding on to what brings me joy. Maybe it’s because this is my comfort movie, but I think it has one of the best romcom soundtracks as well.
Why these majors and minors? In high school I was deeply interested in language learning and how language can change how you think and who you are. I took both Spanish and French and I decided I wanted to continue with this in college. This led me directly to taking French and global studies classes here at the University. The French faculty at UNL are incredible! They care deeply for their students and have supported me and my French major since before I declared freshman year! I was sold on a global studies major after taking GLST 201 Introduction to Global Studies because of how wide Global Studies reaches and how it allows me to study many areas I care about like climate change, human rights, and global security. Many of my classes are political science classes so it made sense to add an additional major!
The most interesting class I’ve taken at the University has been an Honors 395H seminar titled “Literacy Across Nebraska”. It completely changed my understanding of literacy and how it impacts every area of society and every person. In fact, it inspired my undergraduate thesis and the area of my future studies! My favorite classes I’ve taken on the French track have been grammar classes including FREN 301 and FREN 203 and 204. Some of my other favorites I have taken are POLS 472 State Terror, POLS 469 International Law, NSST 391 Threats to World Order, and NSST 390 Nuclear Politics Seminar.
Extracurricular Experiences: This past summer I was awarded the Critical Language Scholarship from the U.S. Department of State to study Hindi in Jaipur, India! I spent two months in an intensive language immersion. I stayed with a host family, met twice a week with a language partner, and had some fantastic teachers and peers. Other students should apply for the CLS because it is a fantastic opportunity to get exposure to and learn critical languages that are not taught at the University or in Nebraska at large.
I have also studied abroad in Angers, France through the UNL French department! This was a one-month French language immersion. This program allowed me to be a French major because it covers six credits of French classes. I absolutely loved exploring Angers, a smaller city in France that speaks very little English. I also got to meet students from all over the U.S. and the world who were studying French! I have completed a wide array of internships during my college career covering government and non-profit realms.
I have completed an internship with the Intern Foundry program as well as at Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, the Great Plains Methodist Conference, and Lincoln Literacy. My best piece of advice: Apply! It’s worth it.
On campus I am involved in UNL Intelligence Community Scholars, UNL French/Francophone Club, and UNL United Methodist Campus Ministry. Off campus I am involved in the Saint Paul Chancel Choir and Justice in Action. I have gotten to speak at some pretty cool community events like the Ignite Lincoln in partnership with the E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues and the Nebraska Ecumenical Legislative Briefing Day.
What are you post-graduation plans? I am hoping to continue my studies! My area of interest is how language and literacy impacts international relations.
