Brianna Shu Yang
What are your next steps now that the Fellowship has ended and you've completed your undergraduate degree?
I'll be heading to Oxford next year (hopefully in-person!) to read for an MSc in Social Science of the Internet. This summer, I'm working for Organizing Together to set the groundwork for a huge GOTV effort in Michigan this November and volunteering for Whose Knowledge?, an organization dedicated to centering the knowledge of marginalized communities on the Internet, while I also prepare to apply for law school.
How has the Fellowship impacted your educational and/or career aspirations?
I've known for a while that I want to work in government in some capacity, but the Fellowship helped to concretize this very nebulous career goal. By doing the research for my paper, having conversations with other Fellows, and especially hearing from speakers like Chris Lu and Marcia Johnson-Blanco, I have a better idea of what working in (and around) government can actually mean. I'm excited to see where that knowledge takes me in the coming years.
What is your favorite memory of the Fellowship?
The virtual spring conference was certainly a unique experience, but I absolutely loved the fall conference. I'll always remember wandering into a restaurant with some of the other Fellows to watch the Washington Nationals win the World Series on the first night of the conference. I truly did not expect to form such quick friendships, but those are what I will cherish the most from the Fellowship, and I'm so glad that several of the other Fellows will be heading to Oxford with me next year!
If you could have any job in the world, what would you do?
In my wildest dreams, my career path would follow that of William Howard Taft: the Department of Justice, the federal judiciary, the White House, and finally the Supreme Court; however, I'd "settle" for Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. To interpret law in the highest court and set forth standards for a fairer and more humane judicial system would be a dream. When I was younger, though, I wanted to be a screenwriter. Perhaps in my retirement I'll become the next Aaron Sorkin.
Originally published June 11, 2020.