I initially thought my YYGS experience would be defined by the lectures or seminars, and while they were incredible, the core of my experience centered around five objects: a set of keys, a volleyball net, a bracelet, a bowl, and a courtyard table.
It started with a problem: Pauli Murray’s suites locked automatically every time they closed, so someone was constantly getting locked out, whether from a shower or a quick buttery run with their key left behind. That meant a lot of knocking on our own door and standing around waiting to be let back in. But, it became a great way for me and my five suitemates (yes, five) to bond. We spent far more time in our common area than we would have otherwise, just because someone was always locked out and everyone else already knew to be there.
Then it was the volleyball net, borrowed from the Program Office in Benjamin Franklin most afternoons and set up in the Orange Courtyard. Despite the hassle of setting up the nets ourselves, it became a routine we followed in the free time between dinner and breakout sessions. Our group was diverse, with players from China, Brazil, New Jersey, Hong Kong, London, NYC, and more. Everyone had learned a slightly different version of the game, with different callouts and plays, but we still put together really good volleyball. It also brought together people who may have not crossed paths otherwise, since we came from different academic tracks like PLE, SGC, and IST, or lived in different residential colleges.
At Cookies & Conversations, every PACC scholar received a bracelet, and the event became another space to meet people outside our usual circles. I ran into an old friend from eighth grade, along with several people who turned out to share mutual childhood friends. Every time I spotted someone outside wearing the same bracelet, it reminded me how small our world really is.
My friends and I also started an unnamed tradition: grabbing a bowl (or two) from the Pauli Murray dining hall and filling it with whatever desserts were available that night. Everyone was free to reach in and take a piece, yet nobody wanted to be the one walking through the dining hall carrying a mountain of brownies and chocolate chunk cookies.
Finally, there were the tables of Pauli Murray’s Quiet Courtyard, between Entrances C and D. This was where my closest friends and I met before every lecture, speaker series, talent show, and symposium, walking over together instead of separately. The same tables doubled as a tanning spot, an outdoor study space, or a regular afternoon debrief point before we split off for Suite Checks, where even more conversations happened.
Looking back, it made me realize that the cherished memories of YYGS didn’t need grand moments to form. In fact, all it took was a key, a net, a bracelet, a bowl, and a table.
Canyon, USA (NY) YYGS 2026