Monique Claiborne

About Monique

(updated 6/2018) Monique Claiborne graduated from Princeton University in May 2017 with a B.A. in Philosophy and a Certificate in American Studies.  Growing up in her hometown Opelousas, Louisiana, Monique developed a deep appreciation for local culture and the arts.  During her sophomore year at Princeton, she discovered her love for philosophy, which has enabled her to further explore the intersection of culture, value and aesthetics.  Her independent research as a junior explored the moral consequences of aestheticizing “evil” in popular films, and her senior thesis explored the relationship between beauty and utility in technology and society.  As a member of the Campus Iconography Committee, Monique collaborated with the Executive Vice President of the University and select professors, students and administrators to draft proposals aimed at diversifying Princeton’s iconography to better reflect the university community.  Her primary creative outlets during her time at Princeton were dancing and choreographing for Disiac Dance Company, as well as photography and filmmaking for Princeton Faith and Action. She also enjoyed leading campus tours, coaching a youth basketball team and helping undergraduates and graduate students with written work as a fellow in the Princeton Writing Center.  During her Luce year in Korea, Monique worked for Asian Boss, a media start-up that aspires to empower the global youth to cultivate curiosity and critical thinking, as well as challenge cultural stereotypes.  Asian Boss does this by bringing the most authentic perspectives on the latest news and cultural trends from all over Asia to a primarily Western audience via reporting street interviews.  Monique’s role included generating future content from the research phase to production, supervising volunteers based in other countries, as well as helping Asian Boss to establish a scalable infrastructure that will enable them to eventually mobilize reporters in every Asian country.