Meet ILR Students: Terrill Malone '21
My name is Terrill Malone and I am a rising junior in the ILR School. The summer after my first-year, I traveled to India to participate in the ILR School’s Global Service Learning Program (GSL). The GSL, in partnership with a non-governmental organization (NGO), Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement (SVYM), is a program that focuses on non-political, non-religious community development for the benefit of indigenous and rural people in India. The program offers service opportunities in the areas of law and advocacy, human resources, and education. Before arriving in India, I spent the spring semester of my freshman year in the pre-departure course, which is designed to help India GSL students make an easier transition to Indian life and culture. When I arrived in India, I took courses such as Indian Culture and Civilization, Indian Work and Labor, Kannada Language, and Gender in India. Our group traveled to many historically and culturally significant sites, like the Mysore Palace, the home of the King of Mysore, and Shravanabelagola, a Jain pilgrimage destination on a mountain that houses the world’s largest monolithic stone statue of Lord Gommateshwara.
My project in India was teaching math to students with mental and intellectual impairments and disabilities, as well as conducting research on Cerebral Palsy. Working beside highly skilled and experienced staff, I was tasked with creating baseline examinations that would test the students’ prior knowledge, teaching students during the school day and re-examining the students at the end of my project to measure their learning growth and outcomes. The students that I worked with, overall, achieved a 30-percent increase in their average score on the post-examination. I used this information to advise the full-time staff and teachers to help them explore different ways to improve student learning.
Joined by 15 other ILR and Global Health students, we composed a truly remarkable group, and as one of only two freshmen admitted into the program, I am humbled to have been chosen. The purposeful and passionate work that I did while in India, coupled with the experiences of India’s vast culture and beauty, allowed for many life changing moments. I left India with more knowledge, experience, passion, empathy, and love. After returning to the ILR School, I decided to explore the field of Disability Rights, Disability Law, and Neurodiversity in the workplace. ILR has continued to support my newfound passion for these areas with courses like Disability Studies, Disability in the Workplace, and Labor Law and Employment.
I am honored to share that I am currently serving as a GSL Teaching Assistant for ILR’s largest international program, India GSL!