One of the things I love most about Cornell is the opportunity it brings to experience new perspectives and learn more on a whole range of topics, far beyond the edges of your chosen major. Cornell is a community of learners, thinkers, and intellectual minds, and it is fascinating to take time to learn about many really important issues and topics relevant to our society, and being able to learn about these topics with fantastic experts in their fields is amazing. I really enjoyed attending the “Criminal (In)Justice: How Mass Incarceration Disrupts Families and Communities” discussion held through eCornell partnering with the West Campus House System. Having the opportunity to hear from professors of sociology, a CEO of a Center for Urban Families organization, and a member of the Ohio government’s Commission on Fatherhood was wonderful and I learned so much from listening to them share their research, work, and experiences with this important topic. It was really informative to hear statistics about children whose parents are incarcerated, stories of experiences the panelists have had working with families in the community-prison pipeline, etc., and the discussion helped me to better understand the issues our country is facing and the work actively being done to help resolve these issues. One of the most important thoughts I came away with is a renewed desire to learn more about every such issue that affects our society and to take advantage of opportunities during my time at Cornell to do so in such a unique way.