Lea Kolesky

A few months after transferring to UC San Diego, when Lea learned she’d achieved Provost Honors her first quarter, she says, “I began to realize that my education has been one of the great journeys of my life. I feel more committed than ever to continue it, and I am grateful I get to do so at UC San Diego.”

She’d had a rough start. Struggling with grief and depression following the death of the father who’d raised her as a single parent, Lea dropped out of the University of Central Florida in 2008 after two semesters. “I was 18 years old, completely lost in the world, and did not yet have the tools necessary for success.” After working full-time for four years, she returned to school in 2012 and immediately excelled. But again, “my studies were derailed in 2013 after I was involved in a devastating car accident.” The setback would last three years. Working full-time, she enrolled in community college, where she maintained a 4.0 GPA and transferred to UC San Diego in 2017.

Lea’s father had seeded a love of learning by taking her and her brother to museums and libraries, and on road trips aimed at rich new experiences. “I visited nearly every state east of the Mississippi before I was 13, and met people across all walks of life, no doubt making me more empathetic and open- minded. Despite often great financial difficulty, my father was dedicated to enhancing our lives with music, art and travel.”

But Lea came to realize that, “most of my interests had grown as male-dominated as the house I shared with my father and brother. The books I read, the music I listened to, the films and other art that I loved: all created by men. When I began pursuing a history major in college, I found that same overwhelming male presence in the curriculum. I made the conscious decision to learn about history with a focus on the perspective of women.”

She’s discovered that, “Studying women’s history has allowed me to better understand issues that affect me directly, as well as reframe the importance individual women have had in my life. After completing my degree, I hope to inspire others, especially underprivileged girls and women, to find themselves in the great story of human history. My ultimate career goal is to work in museums, developing educational programs that are as engaging and stimulating as they are meaningful.”