Culture & Society

Student Works To Spread Aggie Service To Impoverished Nations

Bryce Watson created this organization to train undergraduates on how to create meaningful projects in impoverished communities in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
November 11, 2015

A photo taken by Watson while working in Northern China.
A photo taken by Watson while working in Northern China.

There are many stereotypes about millennials. One that rings true to liberal arts student Bryce Watson is that millennials are said to be one of the most community-conscious and volunteer-oriented generations in American history.

This is what prompted Watson to found the Student Initiative for International Development (SIID) at Texas A&M University. He created this organization to train undergraduates on how to create meaningful projects in impoverished communities in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

As a senior international studies major with a double minor in economics and Mandarin, as well as being a member of the Corps of Cadets, Watson has thrived. He has interned at several international development organizations and has visited Beijing and northern rural China twice as a participant in Project GO, a program in which the Department of Defense awards scholarships to cadets of high academic achievement and leadership potential. The recipients then use their scholarships to study Arabic, Chinese, and Russian abroad—languages that are in high demand.

While in Beijing, he began to focus on rural Chinese migrant students moving to greater metropolitan areas. These migrants were treated like illegal immigrants in urban areas within China and were denied access to public facilities such as education and health care. Watson’s research studied the perceptions of these groups of people.

“I realized that I wanted to go back to A&M and do more international development work; there just wasn’t any. So I thought, if it’s not there and I want it, I assume there’s other people who want it too, so I might as well try and create it and see if there’s interest,” said Watson.

Continue reading on the College of Liberal Arts site.

This article originally appeared in the Texas A&M College of Liberal Arts website.

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