Isaac Goldstein : Alumnus in Action
LEADING MY LIFE
NAME:
Isaac Goldstein
HOMETOWN:
Blue Ash, Ohio
CURRENT SCHOOL:
Stanford University
ALZAR SCHOOL PROGRAM:
Semester 3, Fall 2013
CURRENT CITY:
Stellenbosch, South Africa
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‘What type of major?’ I ask. “A symbolic systems major,” Isaac repeats. “It’s an interdisciplinary cognitive science degree that combines psychology, computer science, philosophy and linguistics as a way to study the mind.” Oh, and not to mention possible minors in Theater and African Studies too. Isaac Goldstein, now in his second year at Stanford University, has just declared his major. From his dorm room in Stellenbosch, South Africa the Alzar School Spring 2014 alumni checks in with us while studying abroad.
At the Alzar School, we often talk about how lessons learned during a student’s semester resonate differently at various stages of life. Three years after his semester school experience, Isaac continues to find himself referencing the Alzar School, but with new understanding. “Empowerment is a word I heard a lot at the Alzar School. But, I didn’t really see the powerful effects of Alzar [School] until a couple years later."
Isaac recognizes that the leadership experiences at the Alzar School were truly empowering. “I really was in charge of my own experiences.” Looking back, Isaac sees the community chores, cooking, the things that at the time were work, were really a mechanism for creating trust and bonds between students. “Only recently have I been able to see how it was the ownership and agency we had over our experiences that really created some of the powerful things we were able to do.”
Isaac attests that “the Alzar School was an impetus for a perspective shift” and carried him forward in his academics and college application process. The relationships Isaac developed with his instructors at the Alzar School were key to how much he was able to grow and learn. “Our teachers at Alzar [School] were our mentors, were our, and are our, friends. Because of that relationship, I was so much more invested in learning and growing academically.” He particularly remembers the many one-on-one conversations with founding English/Spanish teacher, Ellie, working through a place-based writing assignment. It was this individual feedback and assignments tied to his current experience that propelled his writing skills and critical thinking. The values he developed and was beginning to recognize in himself at the Alzar School also helped shape what he was looking for in a university. Compared to other students his age, Isaac feels the Alzar School put him at a huge advantage, helping him “realize the importance of community” and know what type of community member he
ALUMNUS PROFILE