Eric Beeler – GW Blogs from Abroad

Wrapping into an End

AdminJune 16, 2017

Cheers from London!

Well, that is from my last week in London... it's so wild that this incredible semester is wrapping up into its final week. It seems like 5 months is almost the same as 5 minutes, as time has flown by faster than I could have ever imagined.

This semester I've had the opportunity to continue my work with LGBTQ+ students. Honestly, this is one of my most passionate involvements. As a student who identifies on the LGBTQ+ spectrum (and growing up in the south), I can personally relate to the issues and difficulties that face students like me. While many of our LGBTQ+ family members suffer from inquisitions and death threats throughout the world, one consistent trend among members of our community is that discrimination comes in many forms. It's up to us - and allies - to educate our communities about what it means to be gay, queer, trans, intersex, or however someone identifies.

...continue reading "Wrapping into an End"

Hot off the Press: Stonewall Workplace Equality Index – 2017

AdminJune 13, 2017December 17, 2018

By erbeeler

Have there been any current international or domestic issue that have affected your volunteer work/research, has your work become more relevant or has it been Hi there - this is my penultimate blog post... which makes me realize just how fast this experience in London is passing by. While it's definitely a sad post to think about, there's also the fact that I get the opportunity to think about and reflect upon the incredible experiences that I've had and the friends I've made here so far.

Also - just an update (mostly for my parents... hah!), but I've gotten some of my first sets of grades back from papers earlier this semester. I've been getting pretty good grades so far, and my professors have been commenting that they have really enjoyed working with me and reading my papers.

As for my volunteer work... there's recently been a release of a really important milestone: the 2017 Stonewall Workplace Equality Index in the UK. This recent report shows that the average UK company in the top 100 has an average 74% score, which illustrates a huge improvement in recent years. Over 439 employers and 91,248 employees across the UK participated in the survey, the largest number of submissions ever.

...continue reading "Hot off the Press: Stonewall Workplace Equality Index – 2017"

Keep Stepping Forward

AdminJune 13, 2017December 14, 2018

By erbeeler

First off, an update from London: this city has been so incredible so far. I'm finally feeling completely comfortable taking the Tube (the London metro system), can navigate my way around local sites with friends, and am actually really enjoying the modules at my university.

I've continued to get involved with the LGBTQ+ community on campus and throughout the city. As we discussed in my prior blogs, students coming from diverse backgrounds in the United States are much less likely to feel welcome and comfortable in the workplace. I've learned that while the situation is not quite as bad in the UK, it still is a phenomena that affects individuals here as well.

Just recently, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) released a survey in the UK to try and evaluate the experience of LGBTQ+ people in the workplace. Initiatives such as these are taking key steps to really help understand this issue here in the UK.

As for me, I've been continuing my involvement with some individuals at the King's Career Center, connected with multiple students through a flyer/outreach campaign, and am preparing for my first open-attendance meeting. I've also had the opportunity to stay involved with MyGWork (click to link to their website).

...continue reading "Keep Stepping Forward"

Diggin’ In to the Local Community

AdminApril 17, 2017December 14, 2018

By erbeeler

Hi all - update here from the beautiful city of London, England.

I've finally gotten settled in and I'm absolutely loving the city so far. Last week, I turned in my first paper for my classes here (it was a really interesting piece critiquing Aristotle's writings on the naturalness of slavery). Although it got me crammed up for a few days in the library... I've luckily still had the ability to see so much around London for the last few weeks.

On the community service side, I've had an amazing time getting involved with my local community. I've actually been in talks recently with the King's College Career Center as well as some local LGBTQ+ organizations - for example, an amazing organization called MyGWork - about assisting with local events that promote professional networking opportunities for university-aged students who identify on the LGBTQ+ spectrum.

Two weeks ago, I was able to attend and make connections at an incredible networking event in downtown London. Students were in attendance from all over: Kings College, LSE, the University of London, Queen Mary, and even some taking the train all the way from Oxford/Cambridge. Moreover, senior representatives from companies like GSK, PwC, BP, Warner Bros, BNP Paribas, and many other incredible industry leaders were there to talk about their experiences being a LGBTQ+ professional in our modern workforce.

...continue reading "Diggin’ In to the Local Community"

Cheers to the Queen

AdminFebruary 2, 2017December 14, 2018

By erbeeler

Hi there - my name is Eric Beeler, and I'm a GW student studying at King's College London this semester. This is actually my second semester abroad... last semester I was living in Beijing, China and studying on the Associated Colleges in China program!

Welcome... to my first blog entry of the semester. I'm excited to have the opportunity to share my journey with you and talk about my plans to get more involved with my local community here.

First things first, what am I doing in London? So, as I mentioned I'm on the GW England program and I'm based at King's College London. I live right below the Thames in an area called Southwark in a student flat (which is so much better than US dormitories, I might add) and my classes are about a 15-20 minute walk to campus in central London. This semester, I'll be primarily taking Business/Economics classes to fulfill my GW requirements but I'll be dabbling in some other subjects as well.

Now, what are my plans on getting involved in my new community here in London? I'm actually still determining what I want to do. Right now, I've narrowed it down to two subjects: LGBTQ+ career outreach and efforts to help the homeless here in London.

...continue reading "Cheers to the Queen"