Note: In the days leading up to graduation, we are profiling a number of seniors whose interests and accomplishments exemplify the diverse talents that make up the Class of 2008. These students and their classmates are ready to make an impact that extends far beyond Uni High. For the first portrait in this series, see Maritza Mestre's profile of Eunice How. See also Laura Dripps' profile of Kumars Salehi, Sindha Agha's portrait of Erin Hayes, Elaine Gu's profile of Ethan Berl, Erika Belmont's portrait of Alex Zhai, Deborah Ladd's article on Anna Cangellaris, and Rachel Skoza's profile of Ethan Stone.

OUR GENERATION IS not known for its activism.

Some people assume that we all sit around and listen to our iPods, play on our Wiis, and watch trashy reality TV shows on our 300-inch HDTV screens as the world becomes an oven, innocent people continue to die and suffer because of neo-imperialism, and disease becomes more rampant and stronger. They assume that our generation is sitting and watching the world fall apart and we have nothing to say or do about it.

But, of course, we know better than that.

If we just take a look around our school it’s easy to see that we are not wholly a voiceless, lazy, or indifferent generation. With student organizations like Activism Club, United for Uganda (UFU), Global Studies Initiative (GSI), Students for a Better World (S4BW), and others, we can see that there are plenty of students who are making statements and taking actions against injustices.

Among these students is senior Shara Esbenshade, an active member of the community both at Uni and in Champaign-Urbana. This year alone she has been executive secretary/treasurer of Student Council; a leader of UFU along with classmates Marika Iyer and Eunice How; a leading member of Activism Club and GSI; and an activist in the Anti-War Anti-Racism Effort (AWARE), a community group that works with other organizations to plan largescale events and protests.

But what makes Esbenshade different from your average busy, achieving high school student is that she does not limit her scope to her immediate surroundings. Many of her activities encourage her to look beyond Uni High, beyond C-U, and in many cases beyond the United States.

This has made her aware of how global conflicts and issues are related to issues that affect us right here in C-U.

“You can do local activism even if it’s taking place abroad,” she said. “These things are interconnected, and it’s important that people involved have a world view.”

Esbenshade said that she attended her first protest when she was just an infant, and her parents’ involvement in the community was what first inspired her to be socially conscious and active.

Coming to Uni, Esbenshade already had a sense of social issues and her duty in relation to them, but she said that growing older at Uni helped her develop as well.

When asked whether being at Uni has helped or hurt her activism, Esbenshade said that it was a little of both. She began by talking about all the opportunities she’s had to start clubs and be a part of different organizations that she would never have at a school like Urbana High School (UHS).

She then went on to talk about the ways in which Uni has made activism difficult for her to continue. She talked of instances where she hadn’t been excused from classes to go to protests and how the time commitment required for school took away from her time to protest or be involved in organizations.

“At UHS it’s hard to start a club, but at the same time I would be able to get more involved in communitywide activism,” she said. “At Uni, though, the really strict absence policy has made it really difficult for me sometimes.”

Throughout her time at Uni, Esbenshade has made a significant impact on the number of students involved in activism and the number of students who are aware about such issues as bateyes in the Dominican Republic and child soldiers in Uganda. But she says that the achievement she is most proud of is something that occurred outside of school.

Esbenshade and a few other students from area schools organized a communitywide anti-war “die-in” that ended up being very successful. Esbenshade said that she was proud of it because of the awareness it spread and public recognition it got.

“I’m really proud of it just because it got so much awareness out there, and the local news realizing that we’re not just this stupid, apathetic generation.”

So where is this social activist and varsity soccer player with a 4.0 GPA headed after Uni?

She talked about plans to head to Honduras for a year and do some volunteer work. Esbenshade has also been accepted to Stanford. It took her awhile to make the difficult decision to forgo schools in New York City that she had planned on attending and go to Stanford.

“I would much rather live in New York City,” she said, “but Stanford will provide me with far more opportunities than any of the other schools, it seems. Part of me is still kind of ambivalent, since it [Stanford] has this conservative image and all, but my impression of the students is that they are really doing some pretty incredible and progressive things with those resources.”

Look for Esbenshade to quickly join the ranks of those Stanford students doing incredible and progressive things. Driven, hardworking, passionate, she’s achieved so much, but she still remains humble and pleasant. If she bumps into you in the hallway she’ll say excuse me without shoving her nose up into the air, she never forgets to say thank you, and she doesn’t broadcast herself, her achievements, or her hard work.

And after Stanford?

“I hope to be doing political work with a grassroots organization or as a journalist, which is what appeals to me most at this moment, but my dreams are constantly changing.”

So don’t worry, you’ll be hearing more about her in the future.