Jonna Farren Folks

My name is Jonna Farren Folks, and I am a dual International Studies (Asia concentration) and Political Science major, Asian Studies minor, set to graduate in May 2011. I've been fascinated with East Asian cultures and people, for as long as I've been aware of them, especially Japan. I have been studying Japanese for nearly four years now and spent my junior year at Ritsumeikan Asia-Pacific University in Oita Prefecture, Japan. I plan on eventually working either in the US Foreign Service, or as a full-time translator/interpreter in Japan after I spend the first two years after I graduate teaching English in either Japan or Korea. I am very excited about my future prospects and feel very certain that my education here at LSU has provided me with the knowledge and skills to succeed!  I knew that I wanted to be an International Studies major and concentrate on Asia the moment I applied to come to LSU, but for the longest time I was without a declared minor, mainly because there just wasn't anything that caught my attention - that is, until Asian Studies came along. It has fit in perfectly with everything that I have been studying at LSU and focusing my academic career on, but could definitely fit in with any major if you have a love for the subject!