LeFrak Fellows Alumni
Abby Garrett
Major and Year: Psychology, 3rd Year / Senior
The LeFrak Forum has made me think more deeply about my life by introducing me to new ideas about political theory, happiness, and the good life. Engaging with readings and discussions on these topics has led me to think about how they relate to my life.
The LeFrak Forum has challenged me to think differently through exposure to people and ideas that I would not have been exposed to otherwise. The Forum also fosters healthy debate and conversation about a variety of topics.
Chloe Parker
Major and year: Political Science Prelaw, Senior
The LeFrak Forum has allowed me to be more reflective about my choices and the underlying values that guide them. I can interpret my values, perspectives, and understandings within a broader philosophical and political landscape, rather than a series of isolated decisions. In examining political and moral philosophies, the LeFrak Forum has helped refine and reform how I interact with the world. It has challenged my previously held conceptions on my limitations and strengthened my ability to remain flexible in an ever-changing landscape of new information.
The LeFrak Forum has presented me with the unique opportunity to interact with a wide foray of thought, engage in rigorous debates, and cultivate the genuine curiosity that blossoms when learning from my peers. It has strengthened my confidence in voicing my thoughts and opinions, while providing an interactive environment that allows me to adapt and develop them when introduced to new ideas, concepts, and philosophies. The LeFrak Forum has broadened my learning beyond academia into my lived experience, shaping the kind of person I aspire to be.
My favorite book is Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics. In studying Aristotle's Ethics, I found myself deeply engaged in assessing whether my actions and choices were virtuous and in developing a stronger sense of virtue every day. Aristotle's Ethics was the first work of political philosophy I engaged with in its entirety, rather than merely an excerpt, which helped me better understand his philosophical arguments and how they should be applied in the practice and development of virtue in my life, rather than only in theory. Deeply examining and deconstructing the Ethics encouraged me to read more political philosophers and to continue my formal study of them.
Tristan Williams
Thinking about happiness and what it means to be happy has given me a lot of valuable insight of what I should care about and focus on. Without philosophy like this, people are generally lost when it comes to these questions
LeFrak has taught me how to synthesize ideas from a wide range of thinkers and to not think so dogmatically about the deep questions of life. Hearing some of the top professors in their field explain something to you is a lot different than simply reading about it yourself. I have achieved a much firmer grasp of political theory and I am much more confident in engaging with others about complicated ideas.
I am a political science major, third year Senior
Thea Walerski
My name is Thea Walerski, I am a senior this year at Michigan State and will be graduating this upcoming May. I am majoring in Political Theory & Constitutional Democracy at James Madison College, while also completing my Secondary Education (Social Studies 7-12) teaching certification through the College of Education.
Being a part of the LeFrak Forum has allowed me to further explore life's biggest questions through student-driven discussions and events. As an aspiring public servant, the Forum has given me the opportunities to continue to receive an education that is both reflective and critical. The events hosted through the Forum have been able to give me the insights with scholars throughout history and today who consistently challenge and reflect on how to create a better collective political society.
As aspiring educator, and having been able to study at James Madison College, the LeFrak Forum has continued to allow myself to be challenged by life's biggest questions. Although the Forum has challenged me to keep questioning, it has given me the opportunities to begin creating solutions. LeFrak has shown me that there may not be a definitive answer, but we can still challenge ourselves by imagining a political world where we all can strive.