Through hard work and service Kalia Sewer shares her goals as she enters her senior year at Indiana University Indianapolis. Kaila showed consistent leadership on campus. Currently, she is a member of the Liberal Arts Student Council as the USG Representative, while also being a Student Coordinator for First-Year Mentoring, a Supervisor in the IU Indianapolis Speakers Lab, a Membership Chair of the IU Indianapolis Collegiate 100, and the Vice President of the Omicron Pi Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. Kaila then shares her personal interest in playing a lot of video games and being obsessed with Marvel Rivals and Baldur's Gate 3. Just recently she got a gaming PC, while also enjoying movies and reading.
 

EDUCATIONAL GOALS AND RESEARCH: WHAT LEAD YOU TO IU INDIANAPOLIS?
 

I chose to go to IU Indianapolis primarily for the VA benefits and its proximity to my home. Family is extremely important to me, so I wanted to stay as close as possible! I actually started off as a history major with the intent to go to law school. After the first week of school, I immediately knew that history wasn't what I wanted to study for the next four years and swapped to the Law in Liberal Arts program. 

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I stuck with my plan for three years, anticipating that I would graduate early and even adding on my film studies minor. Once I was faced with impending graduation, I asked my advisor what major I could complete in the year I had left and suddenly I was double majoring. Though my journey was nontraditional, I've found a strong passion for communication studies and the multiple disciplines it can be applied to!

PROFESSIONAL AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH
 

My family has always emphasized education as the most important thing that we as individuals can attain. So many of my relatives were unable to further themselves academically because of systemic and financial barriers. I'm pursuing an education for every little girl who can't pursue one for themselves. As I wrap up my undergraduate career, I'm hoping to get accepted into my Communication Studies graduate programs. On a lighter note, I'm hoping to spend as much time with my friends and family before I get wrapped up in being an actual adult. 
 

WHAT RESEARCH OR PROJECTS ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON?
 

Currently, I'm researching how the media communicates the "indominable human spirit". In my paper titled, A Hopeless Hell: How Humanity Takes Form in Media, I'm focusing primarily on cultural studies and cultivation theory as I allege that repeated exposure to stories that portray human resilience may influence audience perception of those qualities as "reality".  The basis for this project comes from the short story I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison which many view as a bleak look at the future of humanity. I believe, though, that there is so much more Ellison is saying with this story, and I hope to convey that in my project!

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WHAT MAJOR WOMEN INSPIRE YOU?
 

One of the many women who inspires me is Raine Allen-Miller. Miller is a newer director coming off her debut with Rye Lane. That film is a poignant reminder to me that the most beautiful things we can do are build relationships with amazing people. Another inspiration of mine is Ella Fitzgerald. Jazz is one of my favorite genres of music, and I believe no one does it better than Fitzgerald. Her fight for racial equality in one of the worst times in American history for a Black woman is something that pushes me forward every day.