Cass Guinto

Cass is a junior at Rutgers–Newark studying English and Urban Education. As a first-generation queer Filipina/x American, she deeply values her roots and aims to incorporate them into her advocacy work. Through this fellowship, Cass hopes to illuminate the rich tapestry of Filipino/a/x American history and art in order to foster more honest, empowering, and decolonize narratives for her community.

Publications:

• Wrote the poetry narrated in "Frayed Ties," a brutalist experimental fashion film by Pratt Institute alum and film director Mylo Butler. https://www.mylobutler.com/frayed-ties

• Covered poetry and panel event "Aliveness and the Black Poem" for the Rutgers–Newark School of Arts and Sciences news site. https://sasn.rutgers.edu/news/exploring-essence-black-aliveness-conversation-john-keene-nikky-finney-kevin-quashie-and-tracy

Media Appearances/Speaking Engagements:

• Hosted the inaugural "MX" LGBTQ+ pageant in May 2023.

• Facilitated weekly WRT-101 supplemental instruction sessions for Bergen Community College students throughout the 2022–23 academic year.

• Presented on the Honor-Shame Cultural Paradigm at Bergen Community College's 2022 Judith K. Winn School of Honors Conference.

Previous Organizations: 

• Filipino Intercollegiate Networking Dialogue, Incorporated (May 2022 – Present)

• Apex For Youth (November 2023 – Present)

• ISGRJ Quilting Water Public Arts Project (February 2024 – Present)

Accomplishments:

• Served as District 3 Vice Chairperson of the Filipino Intercollegiate Networking Dialogue (FIND, Inc.) in the 2022–23 academic year, overseeing the cultural and educational programming of Filipino collegiate organizations across New York City, Long Island, and North Jersey. Currently serving as Secretary of FIND, Inc. at large, whose network spans multiple states along the East Coast.

• Founded and organized "MX," an intercollegiate cultural pageant for LGBTQ+ students in the New York metropolitan area in May 2023 called (Instagram: @mxpageant).

• Recognized in the New York Times for my mental health student advocacy work as Co-Founding President of Bergen Community College's Active Minds chapter in 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/22/us/covid-college-mental-health-suicide.html

Upcoming Projects:

• Representing the Pampanga province of the Philippines at Hunter College's inaugural Mx. Asia pageant in May 2024.

• Spearheading the first edition of "Ating Ligaya," a cultural zine exploring Filipino/a/x community joy. To be published as part of "Humanities 4 Humanity" (H4H), a collaborative digital archive being developed through the ISGRJ's Fellows in Racial Justice Learning Community.

• Incoming Summer 2024 Youth Equity Intern at the Association to Benefit Children, an educational non-profit organization serving New York City's most vulnerable children and families.

I am a creative, a writer, and an aspiring educator. My passion for resisting historical and narrative revisionism is at the heart of all my work.