Image: A fourth-year History and English major, Priya Storey is applying for the final year of the Double Dawg program in graduate school to complete her master’s degree in history next year. She noted the numerous and diverse academic opportunities available at UGA are what first caught her attention when looking at prospective colleges. She’s taken advantage of many of those opportunities as a double major (History and English) and studying abroad. She is currently pre-law, and explains English and History both work together to build a strong foundation for studying law. Studying abroad (twice) in Oxford and Paris also inspired her research area and motivated a real passion for history. Thanks to the Double Dawg program, I can develop graduate-level skills and apply them to my undergraduate studies. With this seamless transition, I can pursue a rigorous study plan while also being financially smart. Priya loved her study away program at UGA Oxford and in Paris. She noted that her time at Oxford inspired her thesis since she took part in local research for a class on the Protestant Reformation. By doing very localized research, I was inspired to research the wider extent and impact the reformation had on the English peoples. She is currently researching the extent of the role the print revolution played in the politics and deployment of the Protestant Reformation in Tudor England. Somehow Priya has also found time for other passions, such as her sorority Delta Gamma, where she has made lifelong friends. Our philanthropy is to help those who are visually impaired or blind while also spreading awareness of the issues this community faces. I have a blind family member, and I love seeing the positive impact we have on the Athens community, but also nationally. Constantly surrounded by the arts; from dancing jazz and ballroom to playing the flute in the UGA Symphonic Band, Priya has a passion for the arts and is a member of the Ballroom Performance Group here on campus. She loves having a place to express her love for dancing and performing with others. “We are always learning new dance styles and choreographies while also learning from each other, so it’s an amazing community of students from all backgrounds”, she commented. (Pictured 4th from left - Priya Storey, with the UGA ballroom dance group). Priya was happy to discuss her advocacy and journey as a Type One diabetic, and it’s a telling fact on the kind of person she is that her journey is more about helping others, then about what she has gone through; I was diagnosed with Type One Diabetes when I was 9. My brother had been diagnosed a few years before me, so I wasn’t completely new to the diagnosis. I became an ambassador for Breakthrough T1D, an organization dedicated to fundraising for a cure for Type One Diabetes. I was an ambassador for eleven years, and I loved my time at the foundation. I even had the opportunity to go to Congress to advocate for a bill to reduce insulin costs in a program called Children’s Congress. I love spreading awareness for Type One Diabetes and hope my story can positively affect other diabetics and show that diabetes does not have to hinder you, but instead, empower you to make an impact in other people’s. In her free time, you will most likely find Priya at Emmanuel’s Episcopal Church, Cali n’ Tito’s (the best Peruvian food in Georgia), or at Duke’s & Dottie’s, testing her knowledge of line dances!
