Adin White

Research Project:

"Memory, History, and Healing: The Maidu Trail of Tears”

Faculty Mentor:

Jesse Dizard, PhD | Professor, Department of Anthropology

Interview with Adin

A brief bio (including major, year, and any extracurricular activities)

• “Hi! My name is Adin White. I’m a senior anthropology major at Chico State. I’m the Commissioner of Sustainability Affairs for AS, Vice President of the Graduate Pathways Society, President for Chico State’s UNICEF chapter, Treasurer for Amnesty International’s Chico State chapter, and Outreach & Peer Mentor Coordinator for Chico Anthropological Society. I’m also the Donor Outreach Manager for Sharing Blessings to Others, a local nonprofit providing urgently needed resources and supplies to children in Haiti. Also in the summer I work as an archaeologist.”

What inspired you to join the BSS Future Scholars Program?

• “I was inspired to join the BSS Future Scholars Program by my mentor, Dr. Jesse Dizard. I have taken many of his classes in the three semesters I’ve been at Chico State and have had the privilege of working with him on projects for the Anthropology Department’s Advanced Lab for Visual Anthropology. These projects have helped me to develop a passion for cultural anthropology and media arts, and I thought that the BSS Future Scholars Program would be a great way to hone the research skills needed for good scholarship in these fields.”

What has been your most memorable experience in the program so far?

• “So far, my most memorable experience has been presenting to my fellow BSS Future Scholars the fruits of my research. Everyone was incredibly supportive and kind, and it was amazing to see the unique and fascinating research that my peers are engaging with.”

How has the program impacted your academic and personal growth?

• “I would say the program has opened my eyes to a world of opportunity in mentored research and made me feel empowered to chase campus involvement even further. I feel I am a better, more confident, and more careful scholar because of the BSS Future Scholars Program.”

What are your future goals and aspirations?

• “In the future I want to do whatever I can to help spread a framework for understanding the world that acknowledges the shared humanity of all people and undermines colonial and imperial action, racism, classism, sexism, and all other forms of artificial division and dehumanization that enable exploitation and death on mass scales across the world. I might end up trying to do this through academia, film production, or public policy, perhaps all three.”

Any advice you would like to share with fellow students?

• “Don’t be afraid to get involved. If you see a vacuum of responsibility, fill it!”