2006 Filipinas Magazine Achievement Awards

Youth Leadership: Jennifer Punsalan Wood
Sponsored by State Farm Insurance Companies

?Student. Volunteer. Activist. Leader. These are just a few of the countless roles Jennifer Punsalan Wood plays on a day-to-day basis. At age 23, “Jenny” Wood has touched many lives through her exceptionally active role in the community.
As president of the campus community at the University of California, Los Angeles, she serves as the chief representative, advocate and policy-maker for the school’s 25,000 undergraduate students on the university, state and national levels. Holding the highest position in the Undergraduate Student Associate Council is a daunting and time-consuming task, but Wood takes advantage of her prominence to “challenge [herself] and strengthen [her] own beliefs.”

“A leader of any kind must demonstrate compassion. If you’re not connected to the community and its needs, you will be ineffective as a leader,” Wood says. She adds that a leader must also have a “strong vision.”

As a board member and representative of the Affirmative Action Coalition for Samahang Pilipino, UCLA’s Filipino student organization, the half-English, half-Filipina has made it a point to become “more connected” with her heritage. Wood’s work in Samahang Pilipino includes direct involvement in the Justice for Filipino American Veterans (JFAV) campaign, pushing for a Pilipino Studies department, joining the student movement to stop statewide budget cuts to university outreach programs for underrepresented communities, and performing in Pilipino Cultural Nights.

As ambassador for the AIDS Institute at UCLA, Wood promotes public awareness of HIV/AIDS. She understands that the global epidemic is not only a medical problem but a social problem as well. “The negative stigma attached to HIV/AIDS only perpetuates the disease when it really needs advocacy and bold steps by elected officials for changes to be made.” Wood coordinated two UCLA World AIDS Days to mobilize thousands of students in a march, rally, workshops and artistic performances aimed at educating the student body about the AIDS pandemic. She has also launched a fundraising effort with the Treatment Action Campaign in South Africa, where over 21 percent of the population was afflicted by HIV/AIDS as of the end of 2003.

As a fifth-year student at the University of California Los Angeles, Wood will graduate in June 2006 with a double major in international development studies and sociology, as well as a minor in public policy. With an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, she hopes to take graduate studies in both law and public policy. Like the majority of new college graduates, Wood doesn’t know what the future holds for her, but she envisions going the nonprofit route or getting a government position.

Wood advises today’s youth on the importance of being active contributors to society. “By being engaged in your communities, not only will it benefit you, but it will also be valuable to others,” she says. “The work is incredibly rewarding because of the friends you meet, the guidance offered by mentors and the personal growth you make as an individual.”—Adrienne Salanga