Colin Powell School
Aneesah Saeed: Listening to Her Calling as an International Social Justice Leader
Aneesah Saeed started college as a pre-med major, but she soon discovered that medicine was not her calling. Driven by recurring memories of child poverty and exploitation that she had witnessed as a girl in Pakistan, she joined the International Studies program at the Colin Powell School. She developed a keen interest in User Experience/User Interface design and became passionate about finding ways to use technology to better address global issues. In this interview, she tells of her upbringing as a biracial Pakistani-Italian American. She discusses how, as a student, she has found mentors, pushed herself to develop new technical skills and leadership competencies, and joined student government and other programs to build a career in public service.
Please share a little about where you’re from and your background.
Born in Queens, New York, I am a biracial Caucasian/South-Asian American (my mother is Italian and my father is Pakistani). Growing up, I had been exposed to Eastern and Western cultures due to my heritage. Since my youth, witnessing my parents' hard work ethic and their support and focus on my education has been a driving force for me to learn and excel, in pursuit of obtaining a successful career. My mother, in particular, placed me in competitive sports from a young age, such as gymnastics, and swimming. This led me to become the National Swim Champion for the province of Punjab, Pakistan in 2013. For most women at the time, such sports in Pakistan were considered taboo. After returning from Pakistan for high school, I was involved in the Model UN club where I attended numerous conferences and obtained awards like ‘Honorable Mention’ and ‘Best Delegate.’ The culmination of my youth experiences gave me the drive to excel academically, enabling me to attend Columbia University’s High School Immersion Program for Literature and graduate from high school a year early with AP credits.
What brought you to City College?
For my freshman year, I attended SUNY Geneseo as a Biology major. After finishing the year, I realized that the pre-med track was not my calling and my passion was more geared toward International Studies. When searching for programs, I found that the Colin Powell School at the City College of New York had a remarkable International Studies program with a great reputation. I chose to transfer to CCNY specifically because of its diversity with students from a variety of different backgrounds, cultures, and a distinguished faculty, with all the great exposure New York City has to offer.
What is your passion or purpose behind pursuing what you did at City College?
My perspective on life changed after living in Pakistan from the age of 9 to 13. I vividly remember seeing children begging in the streets for scraps, employed as factory workers, or working as servants. Due to the caste system, it is near impossible for children in this situation to obtain an education and build a better life for themselves. From those visions, I knew that I wanted to major in International Studies to learn about why conflicts take place and how to analyze political, social, economic, and cultural issues. This field was my destiny to raise awareness and be a part of the solution to improve the harsh conditions under which impoverished families live. As an individual who strives to promote justice and equality, the International Studies major has taught me about why conflicts occur and how some nations are able to advance while others are stuck in a poverty trap.
In March of 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic changed our lives. I was amazed by how students and faculty quickly adapted to new online learning platforms. Due to this unprecedented event, I learned about User Experience Design as the pandemic sparked my interest in researching how human-centered technologies are created. I enrolled in Applied Statistics with Professor Sophia Barrett and asked if I could take her Python fieldwork class to learn technological skill sets. Soon after, I discovered an unconventional approach on how to solve problems and improve people’s lives by intersecting International Studies, Public Policy, and Psychology with the field of User Experience and User Interface (UX/UI) Design. I realized these fields complement each other in interesting and significant ways. They focus on problem-solving, adapting to the ever-changing needs of people, thus improving people's lives. My intrigue in learning how to create accessible interfaces sparked my interest and decision to enroll in Columbia University’s six-month UX/UI Boot Camp in November of 2020.
How has your career unfolded, and how has the Colin Powell School helped you along the way?
I am grateful to attend an institution that offers numerous opportunities, resources, fellowships, and scholarships for students at the Colin Powell School and beyond. I am an S Jay Levy and Edward I. Koch Fellow Alumna. In the S Jay Levy fellowship, with the help of Program Officer Lavie Margolin and guidance from my mentor, Chukwudi Onike, a graduate of the MPA Program at CCNY, I obtained a summer internship in May of 2021 with the Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, a non-profit that works with member organizations such as UNICEF to raise awareness and set standards to protect children from violence and exploitation. I then learned that the organization was undergoing a website redesign. Many global humanitarian workers with limited English proficiency were unable to comprehend documents in their mother tongue. With my knowledge of UX/UI and my International Studies background, I presented a powerpoint to stakeholders, showing how my skill sets and understanding of the field would make me an asset. This resulted in them procuring my talents to redesign their website. When the internship finished, I got accepted to the Edward I. Koch Fellowship in August of 2021 to continue working on this project. These opportunities led to me be hired by the Alliance as a UX/UI Accessibility Specialist where I continue to work to this day! Thanks to the mentorship, opportunities, and resources offered by the Colin Powell School, I will be attending a Masters Program in Integrated Design and Media at New York University (NYU) this fall.
Do you have any significant memories or accomplishments from your career or time at City College that you would like to talk about?
In order to improve my leadership abilities, which is a necessary skill set for this field, I joined the Undergraduate Student Government a few weeks after starting my sophomore year as a transfer student to advocate on behalf of students at City College. I then ran for Secretary in my Junior year and I am humbled and honored to serve as the current President of the Organization. In addition, I co-started the United Nations Association Chapter to educate students on major accomplishments of the United Nations and recommend how other students can get involved. These experiences have not only strengthened my skill sets in leadership, collaborating, and policymaking but also taught me how to be an active listener and improve my emotional intelligence. I also had an incredible opportunity to study the Arabic language in Amman, Jordan last winter. Being an International Studies student, I believe it is important to learn other languages, cultures, and traditions. After returning from my study abroad, I finished taking all Arabic language courses offered at City College and was awarded a Certificate of Achievement from the Classical and Modern Languages Literature Department. I’d also like to give a sincere thank you to Dr. Sarah Muir and Dr. Irina Silber from the Department of Anthropology, Gender Studies, and International Studies for granting me the International Studies Service Award.
Do you have any advice you could give to current or future students?
To future and current students at the City College of New York, I would first recommend that you follow your heart and passion by choosing a major that excites you and one that you can see yourself doing in the future. Utilize all the resources available to you as a CCNY student. Check your citymail often, meet with your advisors frequently, and familiarize yourself with the new Office of Student Success team at the Colin Powell School! They offer numerous resources to find internships, receive mentorship, and assist with navigating your pathway throughout your undergraduate education. Use your time wisely and start developing a network by getting to know your professors and creating a Linkedin to form a professional online presence. This is important as it will help you receive letters of recommendation, independent studies, referrals, job/research offers, and guidance. Opportunities will only come if you actively seek them. In addition, keep in mind that the learning will never end! I encourage you all to supplement your learnings from college with outside resources to acquire further skill sets and keep pushing yourself to obtain a successful career. I wish you all the best of luck in all your future endeavors and I am positive that with hard work, dedication, commitment, and patience, you will make your mark on the world!
What does it mean to you to have been selected as CPS Valedictorian?
I am honored to have been selected as Valedictorian of the Colin Powell School! This means so much to me as I was able to excel academically and find my passion because of the education and guidance I received from the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. I am eternally grateful for all the experiences, knowledge, and endless opportunities I have gained at the Colin Powell School. During the interview for Valedictorian, I mentioned that there are four reasons why I would like to be awarded:
For my fellow students, who have jumped through numerous obstacles to graduate and deserve to be congratulated.
For my mother, who has sacrificed so much for me to obtain a quality education.
For General Colin Powell, our institution's namesake, who has forever changed the face of public service leadership and provided so much to the Colin Powell School.
For the faculty and administration, who have been our support system and play a vital role in driving us students toward upward mobility.
I look forward to touching on these points during my speech at our first in-person commencement in two years. Being selected as Valedictorian has shown me that dreams do come true and you are capable of achieving anything as long as you are determined, passionate, and motivated.