Caleb Huffman, 鈥�18, admits that his transition to the 91探花 was daunting. The number of undergraduates alone is 30 times larger than the population of his rural Washington hometown, Onalaska.
But four years later, the 91探花senior is again on the cusp of uprooting himself to a much larger city. This fall, he鈥檒l move to Beijing to spend two years studying Chinese law and society at Peking University.
Why does聽Huffman embrace such drastic changes of scenery? It鈥檚 part of his quest to connect with others聽despite 鈥� and because of 鈥� their many differences.
Urban-rural roots
In third grade, Huffman moved from Renton, an economically and racially diverse city south of Seattle, to Onalaska. 鈥淚t was the complete opposite,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I consider myself someone who鈥檚 been able to bridge the urban-rural divide, and it鈥檚 something I鈥檝e remained very interested in.鈥�
What makes
Caleb tick
When he鈥檚 not planning his next trip to China, Caleb Huffman is extremely active on the 91探花campus. What else is he up to?
He lives in the International Friendship House, owned by University Presbyterian Church. 鈥淭he IFH houses students from all over the world. We host a dinner every Tuesday for international students and go on service learning trips together.鈥�
He played trombone in the 91探花Philharmonic Orchestra for three years. 鈥淚n high school, I was in marching band and concert band, so I wanted something different when I got to the UW: orchestra with all the strings. It was fun!鈥�
He鈥檚 in departmental honors for both his majors and for interdisciplinary honors, and he completed three theses in one year. 鈥淚t was crazy,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I worked hard at it and did fine.鈥�
He鈥檚 on the 91探花College of Arts & Sciences Advisory Committee for Students. 鈥淒ean [Robert] Stacey will tell us what鈥檚 happening in the college and ask us what we think. We give him suggestions that have a real impact on people in the College of Arts & Sciences.鈥�
When he was accepted to the UW, Huffman knew he wanted to major in both political science and communication. But first he had to find a way to pay for it.
Federal loans, financial aid and the State Need Grant went a long way, but they still left a significant gap. Then the philanthropically supported Husky Promise, which covers tuition and fees for Washington state students from low-income families, brought him over the finish line. 鈥淭he support I received made all the difference,鈥� he says.
Exploring differences
Without a financial burden to worry about, Huffman hit the ground running at the UW, participating in several campus groups and exploring his interest in building bridges between communities.
The 91探花chapter of the Veritas Forum, where Huffman would eventually serve as student director, had a strong impact on him. The faith-based organization鈥檚 tagline is 鈥淧ursuing Truth Together,鈥� and as a Christian, Huffman enjoyed engaging with people from different belief systems to discuss some of life鈥檚 most difficult questions.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not omniscient as humans,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he information we鈥檝e processed only gives us a certain slice of the world, which is inherently going to be limited.鈥�
After his first year at the UW, Huffman pushed himself even further by traveling outside the U.S. for the first time. He went to Rome with the support of a grant from the U.S. Department of State, which he learned about through the (OMSFA). In addition to studying global cities and human migrations, he volunteered at a refugee center.
鈥淚 met a lot of political refugees, and their stories were just heartbreaking,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 got really interested in international relations after that.鈥�
A global community
In his sophomore year, Huffman was accepted into the , which matches current 91探花students with incoming first-year students from China to develop cross-cultural communication and leadership skills. After a week of leadership prep on campus, Huffman spent two weeks with his cohort at Tsinghua University in Beijing, where they studied alongside newly admitted 91探花international students who would be moving to Seattle in the fall.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really easy for international students to remain in their communities at the UW,鈥� says Huffman. 鈥淪ome study abroad in the United States, but they never truly 鈥榣eave鈥� their country. This program is trying to bridge that divide.鈥�
Huffman鈥檚 growing interest in U.S.鈥揅hina relations made him want to return and keep learning. With more help from OMSFA, he was selected to participate in two international bridge-building programs with conferences in the U.S. and China. He spent part of last summer in Chengdu, improving his Mandarin and learning more about China鈥檚 culture. And he鈥檚 involved in the Gorton Center Global Leaders Program through the National Bureau of Asian Research, focusing on policy and business leadership.
Help Washington students thrive
The Husky Promise is funded in part by private donations. When you support the Husky Promise Scholarship Fund or other student scholarships, you can help students like Caleb Huffman pursue their goals 鈥� and make an impact on the world.
鈥淗umans are similar in a lot of ways, but our differences are there 鈥� and sometimes you can鈥檛 see them,鈥� Huffman says. 鈥淭hat matters because when you鈥檙e making policy, if you don鈥檛 know about those differences, you might hurt people.鈥�
The next stage of the journey
Ultimately, Huffman hopes to become a lawyer, working in the U.S. legal system to help strengthen our country鈥檚 relationship with China and contribute to a more peaceful world. But first he鈥檚 heading back to China for graduate school to deepen his understanding of its legal system.
鈥淭he U.S.鈥揅hina relationship will be the most critical bilateral relationship of my lifetime. How we will shape each other鈥檚, and the world鈥檚, international norms is a question of utmost importance,鈥� says Huffman.
As he prepares to move to a place that differs dramatically from Seattle in size and culture, Huffman recalls a time when he was nervous about coming to the UW. 鈥淣ow that seems kind of silly to me, because you can find your community anywhere. There are seven billion people in the world. What community are you going to find? Where are you going to go?鈥�
