My name is Jamie Patchefsky and I am a sophomore here at St. Lawrence. I'm majoring in Neuroscience as well as following the pre-med path. I guess you could say I am a "science and math" type of person, and have always been that way. I took my first psychology class last semester and since then have become fascinated the brain and how the mind works and hope to pursue a career working with children in medicine. English has not always been my strongest topic, but I can't exactly say that I've had bad experiences in any English courses. I definitely feel that sometimes the professors don't exactly understand what I'm trying to convey through my writing, but that is an issue I plan on improving as I write more and more. I tend to shy away from English courses but I am hoping to greatly improve my writing and confidence! I enjoy reading and broadening my understanding of different cultures through the text, and that is what I hope to achieve from reading the various works for this class. I want to learn more about the African American culture; their stances on race and gender issues (mentioned in the first reading from Norton), and the views on other common issues discussed in today's social world.
I am part Russian-Jew (from my father's side), as well as Scottish, Irish, Welsh, English, and German from my mother's side. My mom was raised Methodist, but my sister and I have not been educated much regarding religion. It's something that I'd like to learn more about. I went to a small, all girls private school (single sex until 9th grade) from 2nd through 12th grade. I feel as though I would definitely be more "sheltered" if it had not been for my parents and their desire to make sure that my sister and I had a broad understanding and exposure to different races, people of various sexualities, religions etc. I grew up in the outskirts of Philly and miss the city life while up at school. There is always so much going on and so many different types of people everywhere you go, I love it. I consider myself a pretty open-minded person and pride myself in being able to look at and appreciate different perspectives and beliefs.