Beyond the books and lectures, PNW taught Jasmyn Echkoff how to deal with people.

“I learned to respect people’s opinions more, even if I don’t personally agree with them,” said the senior Psychology major.

She said her experiences on campus over the past four years have broadened her understanding through interactions with people from diverse backgrounds, whether in shared classes, casual conversations or friendships. Her connections have opened her eyes to different aspects of others’ lives that she hadn’t previously considered.

“Getting to know my roommates better and joining their families in a way I never imagined brought me into their world of values and beliefs,” said Echkoff.

These deeper connections that she was able to make helped to show her how other people’s personal experiences helped to shape their worldviews. She says her roommates, coming from different backgrounds, have shown her that even though her values and beliefs are different, others’ values and beliefs are crucial.

Eckhoff’s time at PNW has allowed her to reflect on the influence of her biases and how, notably, her mother held racist views and actively passed those down to Jasmyn. 

“I come from a family with a racist mother who specifically doesn’t like people of color,” she said. “Because of this I, too, grew to believe in these stereotypes, but I was able to grow out of it by having two people of color as my roommates.” 

Through these roommates’ shared experiences, Eckhoff’s prejudices and the conditioning of her mother’s beliefs seemed to dissipate. 

“The conditioning that my mother put me through, and all the horrible things she has told me, seem non-existent anymore because of my roommates’ experiences,” she shared.