Avanthi Cole, born and raised in Princeton, NJ, is a member of the Class of 2018. She is thrilled to be a part of the inaugural class of African American Studies majors. Her interest in pursuing a concentration in the AAS department was sparked by Professor Murakawa’s The New Jim Crow: Race and US Crime Policy, a course she took in her freshman spring. Since then, Avanthi has taken a variety of classes in the department, and has only fallen more in love with the field. Her junior paper looked at how multiracial black people identify in a society that forces them to choose one.  For her senior thesis, Avanthi is studying the experiences of black female students at elite, predominantly white colleges and universities to determine how this type of environment affects these students’ emotional well-being and self esteem.  Outside of the classroom, Avanthi is the founder and president of The Motown Sound, a group dedicated to the performance of this genre of music.  She also sings for the Princeton University Glee Club.  Finally, Avanthi works with first year students as a Peer Academic Advisor for Mathey College.