Andrew West
1. What is your favorite quote? What is your interpretation for this quote?
"To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." -Steve Prefontaine
I like this quote because I believe that everyone should give their best all of the time. Way too many people abuse the gifts they have. Sometimes the gifts are athletic, sometimes intellectual and sometimes they are artistic. But giving less than your best at anything is an all too common tragedy.
2. What college, you are attending or have attended? What is best or worst about the college?
I am currently a PhD student at the University of Washington but my BS is from Haverford College in PA. The best thing about Haverford was that it was very small. I had many classes where I was one of 3 or 4 students. I even had one class that was just me and the professor. Also most of the professors lived on campus so there was a lot of interaction outside of class.
3. What is your plan in the next 5 or 10 years from now?
I plan to finish my PhD in a year or two and then go on to a post-doctoral research position. That should last 3-6 years after which I will apply for faculty positions at various colleges and universities. I will also be submitting an application to the astronaut corp. in 2005.
4. What do you think of Upward Bound students?
I have really enjoyed working with Upward Bound students. This is my fourth year working with UB and I have been continually impressed with the work that most students put into their studies. This year in particular, I am impressed with the level of questions that people have. It is clear that many Upward Bound students are superb students who are asking profound questions about the material.
5. If you got all the power in the whole world, what would you change about Upward Bound? Alternatively, if not. Then what would you change about the United State as a resident.
For the first part, the question implies that Leny has all of the power in the world (which might not be too far from the truth). There is not much I would change about Upward Bound. I wish we could have even more students so that more people could benefit from the UB services.
In terms of the US, there is a lot I would change. I think we need to move into a greater than 2 political party system that separates various value systems because right now the two dominant parties are a mix of often conflicting views. I also would like to see more value put on education and teaching. Teachers should be paid more and more financial resources should go into schools rather than bombing other countries.
