Beatrice Agbi

Beatrice Agbi, ATA, Columbia College ‘25

Date Interviewed: August 4, 2023

Introduce yourself!

My name is Beatrice but I go by Bea. I’m a rising junior at Columbia College, and I’m from Queens!

What drew you to work at F&C?

I found out about F&C from a flier that had been posted around campus—I originally wasn’t going to apply because I didn’t want to work at Columbia after having spent the entire school year there, but I ultimately did because I believed in its mission. I wanted to help people. More specifically, I wanted to help students feel more confident in themselves, especially as they navigate the college process, which can be very intimidating.

What is your favorite part of the program?

Seeing the students grow! I genuinely think all of the students that I’ve worked with have become much better writers and much more articulate thinkers. On the whole, they all seem more confident in their ideas.

What is your favorite reading in the program and why?

Definitely the excerpt from “The Souls of Black Folk” by Du Bois. I was never a big fan of any of the Greek stuff, and I think that Du Bois is a fantastic literary writer. His work is just so well done, and it’s really interesting how a lot of the stuff he’s writing about (particularly about the veil and double consciousness) can be applied to the present day.

What is one piece of advice that you would like to give F&C students?

Chill out! Yes, the college process is stressful and scary and overwhelming, but don’t let it control your life. When I was in high school, there were so many students who were so focused on getting into the number one school at all costs, so much so that they let that goal stop them from being in the present moment, whether that be having fun with their friends or enjoying their education. You should definitely work hard to get into college, but don’t let it stress you out any more than it needs to. At the end of the day, you all are more than prepared for college; the fact that you're in F&C and reading and writing about all these difficult philosophical texts means that you are more than capable. And you already have a F&C support network that is going to help you get into college.

What is one fun fact about you?

I took Latin for 5 years! I would say my peak Latin reading skills were in senior year of high school, but even today I can read mottos and some other stuff pretty well.