Culture and costumes: JaKaylah’s formula for success
The first time you meet JaKaylah Rich, chances are pretty good that she’ll be wearing some sort of homemade costume. A gingerbread woman, Alexander Hamilton, Glinda or Elphaba from Wicked, Disney princess Tiana, or even handsome Squidward.
The senior from Fort Wayne must be a costume or fashion design major, or maybe fine arts? Nope, she’s a double major in anthropology and linguistics with minors in Spanish and African American Diaspora Studies who plans to get her master’s in speech language pathology right after graduation. Oh, and she also dabbles in American Sign Language, just for fun.
Say what? She’s a young woman who oozes with joy and creativity, and costumes are just an extension of that part of her personality. As the oldest of four kids—and the first person in her family slated to graduate from college—JaKaylah has found Indiana University a perfect place to nurture her talents and cultivate new ones.
Happiness is getting involved
JaKaylah chose to attend IU for a few reasons: the diversity, the culture centers, the lively downtown—and a scholarship. She was a Groups Scholar majoring in math, hoping to one day become an actuarial scientist. Groups had a profound effect on her college career.
“I loved Groups! I got to connect with people really early, and I made friends who I still talk to today,” she said. “It wasn’t just living together—we go to do activities and clubs as well. It was like a first taste of freedom.” She loved it so much that in summer 2024, she was a Groups resident assistant.
Groups got her off to a great start at IU, but being a math major was not to be.
“Math was not my path,” she said. “It was always my favorite subject in school, and numbers were my first language, but by sophomore year I changed majors because I was not feeling happy enough.”
She discovered that happiness came by indulging her passion for languages and culture, and that’s why she switched to anthropology and linguistics. This summer, she studied abroad in Seville, Spain, as an English specialist at a school for children aged 3 to 18. A big part of the job was helping students one-on-one with their production of English sounds and words.
“The best part of that experience was being told by the teachers and parents that my help has improved their English significantly. I’m glad I was able to make such an impactful change,” she said.
Being able to travel around Europe in her spare time was a bonus. “I went to Marrakesh, Morocco, for 35 euros round trip,” she said. “I also went to London. I love England. I saw four shows in London: Les Misérables, The Great Gatsby, Hamilton, and Wicked!”
Becoming her ‘truest self’
When she’s not studying abroad or being an RA or making the Executive Dean’s List, JaKaylah is a member of IU’s American Sign Language Club and Royal Encounters, a student-led club where she visits kids in hospitals, nonprofits, and local businesses dressed as her favorite Disney princess, Tiana.
“Once, at an autism event, I noticed a kid signing with his mom about me as Tiana. When he saw that Tiana could also use sign language, his eyes went big,” she said.
JaKaylah has always loved spreading joy, and her time at IU—plus all her hobbies—has only made that even stronger.
“IU has literally helped me become myself. People appreciate me now,” she said. “I was the weird kid in high school. I’m still the weird kid, but it’s not stigmatized in college. I can just be my truest self.”
Fun facts about JaKaylah
- Her interest in sign language was sparked by a friend she met through Groups who was deaf and used a cochlear implant. “I used it as an opportunity for exchange, as he taught me signs and I taught him Spanish,” she said.
- Since her first year at IU, JaKaylah has celebrated “Halloweek,” where she wears a different costume each day in the week leading up to Halloween. “People loved it! I have some people who wait each year to see me in public—it always puts a smile on somebody’s face at least,” she said.
- She’s a regular at the Creator Commons Makerspace in Wells Library, where you can find her using the 3D printer or the sewing machine.
Know an interesting Hoosier who should be featured? Email ccjones@iu.edu.
