Impact of Global Citizenship Distinction On Me

Excerpts from an article Belinda Asamoah, a nursing and creative writing major, wrote for the Spring GCP Newsletter.

When Belinda Asamoah joined the Global Citizenship Distinction Program (GCD), she knew she had made a good decision. But little did she know the extent to which she would be transformed by participating in this program.

“When I joined the GCD, I was only a tiny bud that deeply desired to be intellectually stimulated in and outside the classroom in order to blossom,” she wrote in an article for the Global Citizenship Project Newsletter. “The GCD provided the perfect environment for me to bloom.”

Through the close guidance of her faculty advisor, Dr. Raj Wesley, and encouragement from Dr. Janice Thomas, the Director of the International Education Center, she confidently feels that she is going in the right direction of being a global citizen.

“Each activity I participated in, be it small or big, played an important role in shaping me to be a global citizen.”

In the Fall 2022 Semester, GCD participated in Civility Week. As mental health is the GCD theme for the academic year, their Civility Week panel discussion was titled The Effects of Social Media on Mental Health. Their presentation explored the impact of social media on mental health in the US and its effects on mental health worldwide.

“Conducting in-depth research about the global perspectives on mental health and social media and how they are intertwined broadened our understanding of different cultures,” Asamoah wrote. “It was a very humbling experience when we had the opportunity to share our knowledge with the larger campus community during Civility Week.”

In the Spring Semester, she looks forward to exploring mental health in both educational and creative ways.

“GCD members are looking forward to hosting activities that will engage the campus community while encouraging them to have more open discussions about mental health,” Asamoah explained. “We believe that these will be steps taken in the right direction to help eliminate the stigma that is closely associated with mental health.”

Additionally, she conveyed, “I am particularly enthusiastic about participating in this year’s Global Read. I hope that through my close reading and analysis of excerpts from ‘The Book of Joy’, I will be able to spread a little bit of light to the campus community and beyond.”