Emily Pasetes

Community-Academic Scholar: Emily Pasetes (she/they)

Project: Emily worked with, Professor Courtney Cuthbertson and Uniting Pride of Champaign County to gain a better understanding of the unique aspects, concerns, and priorities of LGBTQ community in Champaign County in order to find programming and communication strategies to help Uniting Pride to be more inclusive across the LGBTQ population in Champaign County and contribute to LGBTQ health. Learn more about the project.  

Mentor reflection: "The Community-Academic Scholars program helps students to see how research can be community-engaged and what it means for research to have applied goals or outcomes and helps faculty to be able to advance research projects in ways that benefit the community," said Prof. Cuthbertson. "I hope Emily gained an understanding of what community-engaged social science research can look like, as well as how to design research projects with a goal of strengthening existing supports within communities. I hope they gained some connections in the local area, beyond the university campus and that this experience helped Emily further develop their plans for the future."

Student reflection: “This project showed me the importance of outreach, especially in more rural areas, and how much community attitudes can vary over such a small space. It takes a lot of work to reach communities that are often neglected, and this project introduced me to what it looks like to tackle those issues head-on.” 

Do you have personal story or path that led to your interest in this research project?
I grew up in a Catholic household that didn’t openly accept the LGBTQ+ community. I never really let myself consider that I might be a part of it--I was scared by that idea, even. However, in coming to college and meeting new, diverse people, I’ve become comfortable and happy in my identity as a bisexual and nonbinary individual. It feels really good to be able to live authentically in this way, and it’s amazing to see the increase in representation and acceptance. I think that everyone deserves to have a support system when forming their identity within the LGBTQ+ community, and I was excited to be able to help Uniting Pride better reach the people of the county.

How did working on this project change your understanding of your research topic or your relationship to the Champaign-Urbana community?
My experience in Champaign County had been exclusively in Champaign-Urbana, mostly on campus. I always saw C-U as a very liberal, open, and LGBTQ-affirming location. However, that is not necessarily the case with surrounding towns. This project showed me the importance of outreach, especially in more rural areas, and how much community attitudes can vary over such a small space. It takes a lot of work to reach communities that are often neglected, and this project introduced me to what it looks like to tackle those issues head-on.

What advice would you give to future scholars or to those who are interested in applying for the program?
My advice to future scholars is to make sure to find a subject that you’re passionate in, and be open to pivoting strategies and learning along the way. For the first piece of advice, it’s extremely valuable to have a personal connection or passion for the subject matter. It helps twofold: one, you have a better source of drive throughout the summer to do your best work, and two, you can connect more easily and empathize with the community members you will interact with.

For the second piece of advice, know that ten weeks goes by very quickly, and you must be adaptable. You’re going to face challenges and setbacks along the way--that’s inevitable. The real determinant of your success is going to be how you react to those challenges and try to make the most of them.

What was the most meaningful part of this experience?
The most meaningful part of this experience for me was the connections I made with both my research team and the folks at Uniting Pride. I had not participated in a project where everyone has been so continuously passionate and supportive--it’s refreshing, and it definitely helped motivate me to work harder and do all that I could. With community work like this, one of the best parts is that everyone cares deeply about the subjects. It’s all about the selfless drive to make the place that we live better for everyone, and that attitude is contagious.