Sarisha Ray

CESL Program: Community Scholars Program

Major: Biology

Sarisha Ray ‘26 is an Honors biology student from Cambridge, Massachusetts. During her freshman year of college, she became friends with Darsh Patel ‘26 who later joined the Community Scholars Program (CSP) and informed her about the program. As a STEM student who wanted to get involved with community engagement and complete an Honors thesis with a “direct positive outcome on the community,” Sarisha saw the program as a great opportunity to expand her horizon while also fulfilling requirements. 

Sarisha applied for CSP during her sophomore year and enrolled in the first of four courses, SRVCLRNG 293H: The Good Society, in the fall of her junior year. As part of the program, Sarisha was placed within the mutual aid focus group and partnered with the UMass Food Recovery Network (FRN), which is the university’s chapter of a national program that “unites students on college campuses to fight food waste and hunger by recovering perishable food that would otherwise go to waste.” Every Wednesday and Thursday, UMass FRN completes food recoveries from Franklin Dining Commons, and Sarisha assists with redistributing food to community members and the logistical aspects, such as labeling, temping, and cleaning. Throughout her second year of CSP, Sarisha completed her Honors thesis on food insecurity at UMass and how mutual aid efforts like FRN can help.  

Within the classroom itself, Sarisha appreciates the case studies that were introduced in each of the four courses. Rather than just learning about theory, she values the opportunity to “analyze actual efforts that people have made” and reflect on what was successful or what could be improved upon. Her major takeaway from the class that she was able to practice during her time with UMass FRN is to “truly listen to the community that you’re helping.” As part of the UMass community herself, Sarisha was able to serve her own community and listen to the needs of her fellow students. Through case studies and her own community engagement, she recognizes that “people have the solutions to their own issues, and the main focus of our efforts is to support others in getting what they need to be fulfilled.” 

While reflecting on the culture within the classroom, Sarisha says CSP is very different from her biology classes where it can be difficult to form relationships with the professor and other students due to the large and impersonal nature of the lecture halls. In comparison, CSP is smaller and closer knit due to its size and the fact that students are together for two years. At the beginning of the program, she was nervous about the level of commitment being asked, but in her final semester, Sarisha reflects, “I really have enjoyed spending time with people that I’ve learned so much from, people that I feel so comfortable to share my opinion with even when I think that I might be wrong.”  

In a final reflection on her time in CSP and her relationship with CSP Director, Deborah Keisch, Sarisha says, “Hands down, it’s been one of the best learning environments that I’ve experienced at UMass in terms of the relationships that I’ve been able to build with my peers but also the relationship that we all have with Deborah. Her lecturing environment creates a place where people feel like they can really ask questions. She does a phenomenal job of getting to know all of us and is so kind, patient, empathetic, and immensely well-versed in everything that we’re learning.” 

Thinking about life after graduation, Sarisha hopes to help her community as a physician advocate. She credits CSP for strengthening her ability to think critically about political injustices such as the inequities woven into the medical industry, and to fight against them by listening deeply to patients and engaging in organizing work to address their needs.