Meet Vanessa Mndolo ’12

Vanessa Mndolo ’12 wears a traditional Andalusian flamenco dress at an event in Seville, Spain, during her stay there in fall 2010.

It was a busy but productive time overseas for Vanessa Mndolo ’12. The junior political science and international relations (IR) co-concentrator at Albright spent last semester studying abroad in Seville, Spain. In addition to pursuing her studies, Mndolo volunteered at a local school, teaching English as a Second Language.

The semester also reassured her that she is on the right track.

Reflecting on her experiences, Mndolo said that “living in Spain and traveling around Europe have given me a different perspective on how other people view the world. This experience abroad has helped confirm my interest in international relations.”

At Albright, Mndolo found a means to pursue an interest first kindled in high school.

“I was motivated to participate in IR programs since I was involved in Model United Nations in high school,” she said. “When I came to Albright, I continued with Model United Nations as one of the students who helped to revive the club on campus.”

Mndolo, who was born in Malawi and immigrated to the United States with her family, values all of the IR experiences that she has gained at Albright. One made a particularly strong impression: a 2009 campus lecture by Carl Wilkens, author of I’m Not Leaving, and the only American who stayed in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. He is credited with saving hundreds of Rwandans by risking his life to bring food, water and medicine to orphans around the city.

“I was among the students who got the chance to speak to Mr. Wilkens after his lecture,” Mndolo said. “It was such an amazing experience. We had learned about the genocide in class, but to actually have someone who witnessed what happened firsthand recount his experience gave it a different perspective.”

The IR program takes great pride in guiding all of its students, including Mndolo, as they prepare for the future. In Mndolo’s case, she credits the program with being “very helpful and encouraging” when she was deciding to study abroad.

“The IR program is fairly small at Albright, but do not underestimate the level of commitment of the IR faculty,” she said. “There are countless, great opportunities and my advice is to take advantage of them all.”

She will be building on her Albright experiences after graduation. Mndolo, whose family resides in Philadelphia, plans to attend graduate school to continue studying international relations.

At the 2009 campus lecture by Carl Wilkens, on the Rwandan genocide:
From left, Vanessa Mndolo ’12, Wilkens, Sophie Schuster ’12,
Soe Jean Joh ’11, and Rodney Chau, then an Albright student.