In light of Brown’s transition to online learning, the U-FLi Center will be sharing narratives from the Class of 2020. We aim to affirm and honor graduating students’ time at Brown. Read about Trevor Pike (he/his) below:

What does it mean to you to be U-FLi?

I think being a U-FLi student, personally feeling more closely related to the low income side of things, is a testament to our achievements despite the barriers placed in our way to success. We have worked our way through an elite institution without the immense privileges and connections that others might have, and that is an achievement in and of itself.

What communities at Brown have been influential in making it feel like a home?

I don’t my time at Brown would be the same had it not been for the welcoming arms of both Technology House and the Brown Anime Society, two communities I have come to love and in part lead over the past four years.

Advice you’d give your first-year self?

Being out on the East Coast, a literal thousand miles from home, with a completely different group of people seems absolutely terrifying, I know, but given time you’re going to find that group of people you endure the years with and it’s going to be alright, if not outright excellent.

Favorite memory at Brown?

I think one of my favorites memories of Brown is one characterized by immense amusement in retrospect, and absolute horror in the moment, wherein a friend and I had an incredibly series of miscommunications that turned a ten-minute final project for our Roman History Class into an hour and a half feature film. When I found it that it didn’t need to be so massive I was equal parts furious at the amount of time I had invested and amazed at what we had created. The whole experience has become something of a meme to everyone involved, and I’m glad that it happened in the long-term.

Who are you away from Brown/outside of the student identity? 

Honestly I’m a bit of an idealist, and despite my sarcastic quips to the contrary, I’m really out to help people in the long term, whether that be through my involvement in the Boy Scouts of America, volunteering at the local hospital, or marching in the streets of Providence advocating for environmental preservation. Even though year by year it seems less likely, and the financial struggles my family faces can weigh heavily on my mind, I still hope that within my lifetime we’ll have that shiny chrome future with flying cars and bright blue skies.