Alumni Feature: Lydia Granger (’15)

Lydia Granger (’15) has been grateful for her time at Wheaton College, but it may be the opportunities she has pursued beyond the classroom that have influenced her most. As an International Relations/Spanish major, Lydia says the college credits she earned through AP courses at Lansing Christian School, along with some summer courses, gave her the flexibility to pursue off-campus programs and internships. Now entering her senior year at Wheaton, Lydia reflects that her studying abroad and internship experiences “provided some of the most amazing times of my life!”

Most recently, Lydia took a semester off to pursue an internship at the International Justice Mission (IJM) headquarters in Washington, D.C. Describing that work, Lydia says, “I had the privilege of working with five sharp women from a handful of countries in the fight to end everyday violence against the poor, in three regional field offices. I was a piece of the greater mission of the 1,000+ people-powered organization in 17 field offices and five partner offices. IJM is a faith-fueled NGO that serves the world’s most vulnerable to violence, the poor, as it seeks to end impunity.”

“Ever since I learned of the overwhelming prevalence of modern-day slavery in middle school, it’s been a matter close to my heart and in my prayers.”

Lydia’s responsibilities at IJM were varied and provided valuable hands-on experience, but more importantly, they gave her the opportunity to contribute to work addressing injustice among vulnerable populations — something Lydia says she has long felt called to care about. “Learning about IJM and how it approaches overwhelming issues, with God as both motivating and empowering its work, I wanted to join in.”

Lydia’s work at IJM focused on Latin American countries and drew upon both her Spanish training and coursework in International Relations. Lydia credits the Spanish program at LCS for inspiring her love of the language, and notes that the rigorous curriculum and small class sizes prepared her well for college-level study. She describes entering her college program “well ahead of the game” and “confidently conversational” in Spanish, thanks to the diligence and passion of her LCS Spanish teachers. These skills equipped her for coursework at Wheaton, travels in Latin America, and work with the International Justice Mission.