Written by: Medha Mulabagal, FCSN Voices Youth Reporter
Graphics by: Angel Li, FCSN Voices Graphic Artist
Between her work at SNTutoring and FCSN Voices, Jennie Wang's volunteer service has been invaluable to the special needs community. A hard working and determined volunteer and a strong advocate for neurodiverse children, Jennie has worked tirelessly for the past 2 years with the goal of raising awareness for issues that are commonly brushed over in the neurodiverse community.
After witnessing the struggles that one of her family members faced because of their special needs, Jennie became passionate about working with neurodiverse children. "I wanted to create a more diverse community, with more empathy towards the neurodiverse community," she said. She joined FCSN through a school club, and she appreciated it as a constant in her life and an outlet she always looked forward to.
Jennie spent a lot of her time at FCSN as a volunteer for SNTutoring. She was a part of the program for a year and half, during which she taught a variety of subjects including life skills, finance, music, and English. She describes her most memorable moment: watching her long-time violin student perform. "Watching my student perform really stuck with me and made me feel very lucky just to get the opportunity to teach them," she said.
Jennie's journey at FCSN was not all easy. Due to her commitments to a plethora of extracurriculars, she had a lot on her plate and found it difficult to balance her volunteering and academics. By viewing her volunteer work as a passion and therefore, as a form of relaxation, the balance became easier. Because her volunteer work brought her genuine joy, it was refreshing amidst all her academic stress.
Throughout her time volunteering, Jennie picked up a whole set of useful skills. Through her involvement in various FCSN teams, she learned how to resolve conflicts and communicate with the other members to strengthen their teamwork. From her time at FCSN Voices, she learned how to have compassion for anyone's situation and to always be hardworking and determined. She says, "You should never do something for the reward but for the passion you have."
In the fall, Jennie will be attending UC Berkeley as an English major. She plans to keep what she learned at FCSN with her throughout her college experience and all her other future endeavors. Additionally, she said that she plans to continue her advocacy for neurodiverse individuals by joining Berkeley's student disability association and perhaps even start her own club for individuals with special needs. In the future, she would like to carry this advocacy into her career. Throughout these past years, Jennie has left a great mark on FCSN, and she will undoubtedly continue to be a wonderful advocate for all special needs individuals in the future.
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