OU student Mallory Waligora spends week in nation’s capital as Cherry Blossom Delegate

Since 1948, the National Conference of State Societies (NCSS) has selected accomplished young women from across the United States and around the world to participate in the Cherry Blossom Program, a week-long educational and cultural experience in Washington, D.C. for young women with an interest in social, civic, community, and world affairs.

This year’s program took place April 6 – 12 in Washington, D.C. and was attended by more than 50 young women, each representing their respective state, territory or country.

Candidates for the program are selected based on their leadership and academic achievements, as well as their desire to serve others trough community service, maturity and responsibility. Every state in the U.S. selects a candidate to represent their state in the program as a Cherry Blossom Delegate.

This year, Mallory Waligora — a junior at Oakland University who is triple majoring in International Relations, French Language, and Public Relations — was selected to represent the state of New Hampshire due to her extended family living in the state.

“Upon hearing of my selection, I was really excited,” Waligora said. “I love to visit Washington, D.C., and it’s one of my favorite places. Getting the opportunity to spend an entire week doing diplomacy work was a really exciting opportunity that perfectly aligned with my academics.”

The mission of the Cherry Blossom Program is to have delegates participate in educational, leadership, and cultural activities as they serve their nation and respective state, territory or embassy in a “Washington Classroom” by introducing them to many government officials, cultural, military, and business leaders, as well as female role models who work in the nation’s capital.

In the past decade, the participants have met with First Lady Laura Bush; former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi; Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson; Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton; Justice Sandra Day O’Connor; Naval Commander Yvette Brownwhaller; Brig. Gen. Wilma Vaught; Red Cross President and CEO Dr. Bernadine Healey, among others.

“During my trip, I had a very busy schedule,” Waligora said. “I was working long, yet exciting, days. Some of the events included visiting the Library of Congress to learn about Japanese art, attending a wreath-laying ceremony at the Japanese American Memorial, and going to a traditional tea ceremony at the Japanese Embassy.

“Additionally, we visited lots of embassies, including the Lithuanian Embassy and the Taiwanese Embassy. During our visits, each embassy talked about their unique culture and history and invited us to a meal. I toured the White House, read to elementary school students, and even went to a reception at the Japanese Ambassador’s residence.”

For Waligora, the best part of the trip was getting to learn about history and political science through the lens of Japanese-American relations.

“As someone who studies International Relations here at OU, it was such a fascinating experience to get hands-on experience in diplomacy in D.C.,” she said.

Established in 1948 to celebrate the gift of the Cherry Blossom trees from Japan to the United States, the Cherry Blossom Program continues to celebrate the friendship between the two countries. It takes place each year during the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C.

“It’s not a pageant, it’s a week for women interested in political science to have an opportunity to spend the week in Washington, D.C., learning about international politics,” Waligora said.

“It was such an honor to be the first young woman from Oakland University to participate in this program,” she added. “My hope is that my experience inspires other women at OU to sign up for this program. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions about the program or applying. I am an alumnus of the program and serve as an ambassador for it, so I would love to get any potential students involved.”

Waligora’s trip was funded in part by the Department of Political Science and the Honors College at Oakland University.

“It means so much that OU was able to give me various funding for this trip,” she said. “Knowing that academics and programs like this are important to my university is greatly appreciated.”

To learn more about the Cherry Blossom Program, visit www.ncss-cherryblossomprogram.com/cherryblossomprogram.

You can also reach out to Waligora at [email protected] for more information about her experience and how to get involved with the program.