Positionality Statement

Christian Rua identifies as a white, heterosexual, cis-gender male and is a computer science student at WPI. His parents support his education with love and care. He graduated high school from Agawam, MA, a community in Western Massachusetts where he grew up. It was his experience in high school robotics that inspired his educational career in STEM and why he is an advocate for STEM education, especially in public schools. He has taken on a passion for education throughout life and is pursuing a teaching license as a part of his higher education at WPI. At Claremont Academy, the school the student teaches at, many of the students do not speak English as their first language, which makes communication for Christian difficult at times as he is only fluent in English, but he does his best to listen to students and respect their voice in the classroom. Coming from an upbringing of privilege, he recognizes that his identity aligns with that of the dominant culture in the United States and wants to use that power and privilege to the benefit of his students. This said, he does not have similar lived experience to his students who reside in an urban community, so he needs to be conscious about developing deeper relationships with students through learning about them as people. He is committed to the development of a classroom environment where students feel safe and comfortable enough to express themselves in a manner that is meaningful to them.