Three WPU staff members and eight WPU students, including myself, took on The Big Apple on On March 26. This trip was for our Leadership Spotlight Honors Lab: Business & Immigration taught by Dr. Carolyn Nye and Professor Roger Christman.
The trip consisted of two jam packed days in the city. We started with an early morning in the RDU airport, where we were all just peers.
Throughout the trip we also took a deep dive into how the immigrants got to the United States, where the immigrants went, and how they lived. One of the most eye opening experiences was visiting Ellis Island, where over 12 million immigrants would enter over the 62 years of operation.
“This trip broadened my knowledge about the difficult lives that immigrants lived when they came here and it made me appreciate the diversity we have in this country,” Mohammad Zoro, a junior at WPU, dives into his personal experience of the trip.
Ellis Island was an intense experience. It was seen as such a hopeful place, but in reality there was a lot of harsh times, starting from leaving the dock of their homeland. After months of horrible travel, many immigrants did not get the ability to come to America and the people who did, struggled with harsh times.
One the first the first things we did was the Tenement Museum. This included an old saloon and housing unit that was ran by and housed German immigrants. The housing conditions were far from luxurious, but it was interesting to see the treacherous conditions people went through to land here in the United States.
As well as immigration, we discussed the business side of the current time period and the days of Ellis Island. Students were able to walk around Wall Street, visit an inactive bar that was open in the late 1800’s, and eat in a family restaurant that has been around for a century.
Another key part of the trip was new experiences. Some students had never been on an airplane, seen Times Square, experienced Chinatown, or been on top of the Empire State Building. All things we were able to do through this trip.
As our trip came to an end we quickly realized we were no longer just peers, but we were great friends.
“New York City was new to the majority of us, so we were able to experience the city and bond together thanks to Peace,” Damani Toudle, a Senior Communication Major at WPU explains.
I want to specially thank Dr. Nye, Professor Christman, and Digital Media Coordinator, Christopher Newman. Dr. Nye and Professor Christman worked incredibly hard to make our trip enjoyable and planned a spectacular time as well as spending one of their free weekends with eight students. As well as professors, staff member, Christopher Newman, was the trips personal videographer and photographer. We all appreciate you guys!