To My Fellow Leaders, With Love:

My name is Emily. I was born and raised for the first 10 years of my life on a small farm in Hugo, Minnesota, and in the year I turned 11 my family moved to a small farm in Summerfield, Florida. I don't really remember my life in Minnesota, and so many important milestones in my life happened in Florida; when someone asks where my hometown is I will always say Ocala. I attended school in Ocala, I swam on the year-round team in Ocala, and Ocala is where some of my favorite memories took place.

I have a huge family. Both sides of my family are practicing Roman Catholics... and, evidently, neither set of my grandparents believed in any form of birth control. My mom's side is largely Scottish and Irish, and I could describe every one of them as loud and proud. My dad's side is half Greek and half Hungarian, and, before you ask, yes, family reunions and holidays are exactly like what you saw in My Big Fat Greek Wedding. My family is enormous and obnoxious and I wouldn't trade them for anything. Sometimes it feels empty without my grandparents, who all passed by the time I was 10, but we all have a little bit of each of them in our bodies and in our mannerisms; I have my Granddad's eyes, my Grandmother's height, my Grandfather's curly hair, and my Gamma's talent for music. In my family, wherever you go, whatever you do, there's always somebody who wants to know how you are and somebody else who just woke up that morning with the feeling that they need to call and tell you they love you.

My immediate family consists of my mom, my dad, and my brother, who is three years and nine months my junior. My mom raised me to pursue what I love and not to take any shit from people. My dad raised me to be compassionate and determined. They both raised me to be a powerful woman with intellect and a love for life.

My little brother is always a light in my life. We have always been incredibly close and he was there for me when a lot of other people were not. He is exceptionally intelligent, kind-hearted, and optimistic. There is no doubt in my mind that he is a better person than I am. He is also gay. Nicholas came out to me this past April, and he is so much happier now that it's out in the open. He has created a Youtube channel to spread his own version of the message that it's okay to be gay. If you want to check it out, watch his first video:

If you want to see more of his videos, search for his channel on Youtube: lovehopeandkindness

This is my last year of undergrad at UCF and it has been a wonderful experience. When I graduate in May, I will have earned my Bachelor's in English Lit, minors in Medieval & Renaissance Studies, Women's Studies, and Writing, and a certificate in Service Learning.

My views on activism and feminism tend to favor this approach: I believe that our society is definitely in need of revolutionary changes to demolish our systems of discrimination and oppression. I believe that education should be the first step in that revolution. My dad always told me (and my Granddad always told my mom) that education is something no one can ever take away from me. My parents always pushed me to educate myself, to search for answers to my questions, and to never ever stop questioning. They remind my brother and me from time to time that once we become too complacent and stop asking questions, that's when we make ourselves most vulnerable and we are at our weakest in regard to being taken advantage of. We're not going to make this a better world if we stop questioning and demanding answers.

One type of leadership I do now is working with the Young Women Leaders Program. I have been a Big Sister for two semesters, and this semester will be my first semester as a Facilitator. We promote competence, autonomy, and connection in local middle school girls of Seminole County. It is the most rewarding thing I have ever done, and I hope to stay involved after I graduate or to create a similar program wherever I move after graduation. My brother loves everything he hears about YWLP, and he really wants to begin a Young Men Leaders Program wherever he attends college next year. (Two sibling activists!!)

What I h0pe to learn about girls and leadership this semester is how to gender the arguments about girls' rights, and how to use this gendering of arguments to create a greater understanding of girls and how to use their uniqueness as a tool to further the girl studies movement.

I have read, understand, and agree to the terms of the course syllabus and the blogging protocols.