Queens College student Hasina Islam helps children employ art, crafts, and food to explore world cultures in her volunteer position at the Queens Community House After School Program at P.S. 86Q. A double major in English and Sociology, Islam, who was born in Bangladesh, enjoys exploring all the academic options available to her, but hopes to ultimately pursue a master\u2019s degree in English.<\/strong><\/p>\nOceanographer . . . attorney . . . librarian . . . after pondering those futures, Hasina Islam decided on a wide-open double major at Queens College: English and sociology. \u201cI feel I\u2019ve opened myself to so many things,\u201d the senior says about taking 21 credits a semester, plus summer classes, to dive into other subjects. While at times working three jobs, she has excelled academically. \u201cI was always a bookworm,\u201d Islam declares. \u201cIf I have a 10-minute break, I\u2019m sitting there reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
The fourth of six daughters in a Muslim family from Bangladesh, Islam was not quite 3 when her family settled in Queens. \u201cMy parents wanted us to become educated. Girls back home aren\u2019t given that chance\u2014they\u2019re married off,\u201d Islam relates. One of the first Bengal American families in their Jamaica neighborhood, they had no mosque nearby and nowhere to buy halal meat. So her father opened a Muslim grocery store and later a restaurant and a shop. Her mother chooses to wear the full veil, but Islam prefers the headscarf.<\/p>\n
At the Queens Community House After School Program at P.S. 86Q, Islam helps children employ art, crafts, and food to explore world cultures. Other people have told her she would make a great teacher, but she sees herself as \u201cmore of an organizer. I like to stay behind the scenes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aware that her headscarf and modest attire made her different, Islam
observes \u201cWhen people look at me, because of the way I dress, they underestimate what I can do.\u201d She adds, \u201cMy parents don\u2019t let us forget where we came from\u201d or how fortunate the family is. But most of all, she says, \u201cI feel blessed that I have so much freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Islam would like to remain at QC for a master\u2019s degree in English, perhaps concentrating on Shakespeare while continuing to write poetry and articles. \u201cWhy not study something you love?\u201d is the question she answers with her actions. Islam is pleased with how QC faculty and staff \u201csupport you with whatever you need,\u201d such as finding internships.<\/p>\n
While she may have sailed past the lure of marine biology and law, she hasn\u2019t given up on living life as a librarian. \u201cI\u2019d like to put books on a shelf just so I could read them,\u201d she sighs.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t limit myself to anything. Every day is new.\u201d<\/p>\n
Musical tastes:<\/strong> \u201cI\u2019m a \u201990s baby. If I had to pick one band, the Backstreet Boys have always been my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\nBooks:<\/strong> She loves fiction and fantasy, including Harry Potter. I Am the Messenger,<\/i> by Markus Zusak, about a young cabbie given mysterious missions to help others, \u201creally spoke to me,\u201d she notes.<\/p>\nSurprising Fact:<\/strong> \u201cI\u2019m super conscious of time and always keep my word.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Name: Hasina IslamMajor: English and Sociology Year: 2011From: Sylhet, BangladeshWhy QC: I knew when I was 14 years old that I wanted to become an English major and Queens College seemed like the perfect option for that. \u00a0“The uncertainties of tomorrow push me forward.” – Hasina Islam Student Profiles Alumni Profiles Faculty Profiles Staff Profiles […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"page_category":[],"wf_page_folders":[137],"class_list":["post-716","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=716"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/716\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1971,"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/716\/revisions\/1971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"page_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/page_category?post=716"},{"taxonomy":"wf_page_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.qc.cuny.edu\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_page_folders?post=716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}