Alina Antropova '24 recently received a 21st Century Leader Award at Undergraduate Commencement on May 18, 2024.
Alina, of Southwick, a double major in English literature and social thought and political economy, demonstrated a combination of academic excellence and a deep commitment to social justice when she arrived at UMass Amherst. Her senior thesis, “Sigue Uno Caminando en la Oscuridad (One Keeps Walking in the Darkness): Theorizing the Abolitionist Sanctuary Model,” is centered around the immigration sanctuary movement in western Massachusetts, and her paper on neoliberalism in non-governmental organizations working with Syrian refugees in Turkey was published in UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity.
Over the last several summers, Alina dedicated her time in service of immigration rights. She was a researcher at the Collaborative Site Program on Immigration Policy and U.S.–Mexico Border Communities at New Mexico State University, where she investigated the implementation of the CBP One™ app for asylum appointments and served two terms as an AmeriCorps VISTA summer associate at the West Hill Refugee Welcome Center in Albany, New York.
Alina is a proud member of the UMass Parliamentary Debate Society and has worked at the on-campus Center for Women and Community as a program staff member and staff development coordinator. In the fall, she plans to attend Northeastern University School of Law and hopes to become an immigration attorney.
This year’s undergraduate recipients of the 21st Century Leaders Award were chosen in recognition of their strong academic records and exemplary achievements. They also further distinguished themselves through intellectual accomplishments and will be recognized for the prestige and honor they bring to the University of Massachusetts Amherst, both as undergraduates and as alumni joining the larger community.