Meet The 10 Newest Ypulse Youth Advisory Board Members!
By now regular readers have probably caught a post or two from one of our newest Ypulse Youth Advisory Board members. Today I wanted to take the chance to officially introduce the ten newest teen and twenty-something members that we’ve selected to join our standing board of ten. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been working behind the scenes with new and old board members alike on what this term will bring. We’re planning out more regular editorial features that they will write for Ypulse as well as forming teams for projects that include helping with the the official Ypulse Twitter feed as well other multimedia projects. Needless to say, we here at Ypulse are pretty excited about what the YAB has in store and hope readers feel the same. I asked each board member to write his or her own bio in the third person — so here they are, in their own words…
Amanda Aziz
Amanda Aziz is a high school sophomore in London, Toronto, Canada, She has an interest in theatre, social justice and international law. She also enjoys listening to music, checking out the lastest indie bands, reading YA literature and writing stories, poems and songs, etc. She has a passion for learning languages and about cultures around the world and is currently a member of Junior Achievement. She also volunteers, appreciates fashion and trends, and loves reading PSFK and Ypulse.
Raymond Braun
Raymond is a sophomore at Stanford University majoring in Science, Technology and Society with a focus on Media Studies and Management Science and Engineering. When he’s not studying creativity and entrepreneurship in cutting edge organizations like Google and the impact of technology on media production and consumption, he enjoys politics, testing out new restaurants with friends, social advocacy, and traveling (he’s lived in six cities and speaks three languages). Other passions include writing, reading, magazines, concerts/live music, Pinkberry, and following new trends and technologies. He’s also working on a YA novel that he started writing as a senior at Phillips Exeter Academy.
Amber Gibson
World traveller, model, librarian, foodie, yogi and Northwestern journalism student are just a few of Amber’s many hats. Nevertheless, her favorite hat is still her big floppy straw hat that protects her from getting skin cancer. When she is not eating dark chocolate and watching figure-skating, Amber does love reading and writing and imagining that she is in far more exciting places than she really is.
Nathaniel Lewis
Nathaniel is a young man virtually always on the go. Currently living between two countries — The Bahamas, which he calls home, and Canada, for University — he is living life to it’s fullest and is determined to experience the best of both worlds — not to mention both climates as well. He is very passionate about media, travel, the arts, politics and business. When not at school or working on the next big entrepreneurial adventure, he enjoys experiencing nightlife, culture shows, cooking and writing poetry and listening to music. Filled with energy and enthusiasm, he is ready to embrace all that the world has to offer.
Thomas Mickens
Thomas Mickens is a high school freshman in East Stroudsburg, PA. He has an interest in both creative and journalistic writing, especially after attending a Penn State program this past summer to develop his skills. His other passions include sports, music, and gaming, but if he had to choose one it would definitely be sports. Especially football.
Anna Schmitz
Anna spent her entire childhood wishing for a unicorn and a butler when she saw the clock turn to 11:11. She currently possesses neither, but lives as happily as one can under those circumstances in Saint Paul, MN. She rides her bike in the winter, and is a photobooth enthusiast.
Chase Straight
Chase works for a online community management and moderation company. He recently moved to Dallas, TX and serves as Head of Community for an online virtual world for kids. A former journalism major at the University of Utah, he wrote feature articles and album reviews for a music and art magazine. He is fascinated and constantly amazed with how children create and interact online. Aside from his work, Chase is an avid gamer, blogger, live music lover and audiophile who is obsessed with discovering new music and building his already extensive collection. Oh, and he really likes pandas.
Chelesea Swiggett
Chelsea Swiggett is a writer and lover of books. She has an addiction to pop culture, from movies and tv shows to books and celebrities. She loves traveling and plans to hit every state in the U.S. before heading out of the country. You can find her at thepageflipper.blogspot.com for her opinion on books.
Julia Tanenbaum
Julia is a freshman in high school in Claremont California. A self proclaimed Otaku (anime obsessive person) she strives to complete her immersion into the world of Japanese pop culture. In between school and homework she watches the latest Japanese anime on the internet, reads manga, plays video games, and practices Japanese. Though she is not a fabulous writer by nature, Julia does enjoy writing fan fiction related to said interests and occasionally immersing herself in online role-play sessions. In addition, she loves mashing up anime and game clips into anime music videos which she posts on YouTube, participating in her school’s debate team in novice LD, and of course reading. Julia is incredibly excited to be on the Youth Advisory Board, and able to express her opinions, which she has plenty of.
Lauren Williams
Lauren recently spent a harrowing year in England where she overcame her life’s demons and finally found her answer to that itching question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Currently, she is completing her final year at Northern Arizona University. She will graduate this spring with a BA in English and a minor in Cinema and Visual Culture. Meanwhile, she is keenly stressing herself out by volunteering to take on a 60 page undergraduate thesis about Superman. When not studying, Lauren enjoys watching ungodly amounts of television. An All-American girl, Lauren loves baseball, Coca-Cola, cherry pie, and violent action films. Her favorite pastimes include hanging out in grapefruit trees, building complex civilizations out of LEGOS, and digging for dinosaur bones in the sandbox.