ABOUT THE MILLENNIUM FELLOWSHIP - CLASS OF 2019
United Nations Academic Impact and MCN are proud to partner on the Millennium Fellowship. In the three months the application was open in 2019, over 7,000 young leaders applied to join the Class of 2019 on 1,209 campuses across 135 nations. 69 campuses worldwide (just 6%) were selected to host the 805 Millennium Fellows.
During the Millennium Fellowship, Millennium Fellows' dedicated 96,705 hours and their 422 unique projects positively impacted the lives of 564,366 people worldwide.
UNITED NATIONS ACADEMIC IMPACT AND MCN PROUDLY PRESENT ALEXANDRA RUIZ, A MILLENNIUM FELLOW FOR THE CLASS OF 2019.
Florida International University | Florida, United States | Advancing SDG 10 & UNAI 7
" If I can make even the smallest change, even if its as small as throwing a pebble in an ocean, I will still see some ripple forming and change happening. And maybe someone will see me, and also throw their pebble, and then that will continue on as change grows. As a Millennium Fellow, I hope to spark this change, and spark a fire in others to create their own change. "
Millennium Fellowship Project: Let's Talk About it: Understanding Race
Let's Talk About it: Understanding Race was born through my own experiences with race in South Florida and my personal growth because of it. Understanding race is not always an easy topic and it is not always something people focus on because they feel it does not apply to them. My project focused on breaking those misconceptions to show that race functions in everyone's lives, whether or not you see it daily. Through interviews and personal accounts as well as surveys, I understood how people viewed race in their families and how the way they were taught about race affected how they acted and viewed others. Over 100 students were exposed to the topic of race and more than 2 FIU departments were targeted through this project. Because my project is research based during this semester, my focus was understanding how young adults view race and understand it based on how they were raised. The second part of my project, which will take place in Spring 2020, will use the research I have compiled and I will be applying to present my research at an international conference at the University of Central Florida. My focus this semester was compiling a good foundation in my research so that it could be more beneficial when applied towards creating strategies or presentations at FIU.
About the Millennium Fellow
Alexandra Ruiz is a Senior at Florida International University pursuing her BA in Anthropology with a certificate in Leadership Studies. She is passionate about nonprofit and community development initiatives that will motivate citizens to make changes in their community. Through research oriented activism and as a DACA student, she believes she can make an impact within her community. She was recently awarded a fellowship with the Global Learning Department from FIU as a researcher.
When she graduates from FIU, she is interested in pursuing her Masters degree in International and Intercultural Education, understanding that education is the key to creating change within her community.
