From volunteering at the daycare my grandmother started in downtown Nashville as a kid to attending mission week camps with my church youth group, I have always been around community service. I never engaged with service as an academic concept until I joined the Knowledge in the Service of Society (KISS) FOCUS cluster my first semester of Duke. I took two classes that had service-learning components, and these classes fostered my love for serving others in ways I had never considered before. We would go to Lakewood Elementary biweekly, volunteering our time to help teachers in any way possible. Through weekly visits, I also created a photography project for George Watts Elementary showcasing the hard work done by the faculty there. During the class portion of these courses, we would discuss what service methods were most impactful and the best, academically and anecdotally-proven. This critical and thoughtful engagement with service appealed to me and was the catalyst for personal growth.
Hike with KISS crew and my photography professor, Susie Post-Rust
Service-learning group at Lakewood Elementary
One of my favorite sayings is “Speak to express, not to impress.” Dr. David Malone shared this quote during his guest lecture at our FOCUS dinner, and I immediately knew I wanted to learn more from him. When I realized he was the professor leading the education-focused Boston DukeEngage program, I knew it was a natural progression of my newfound interest in education. My time working at Artists for Humanity and problematizing nonprofits in Boston the summer of 2023 was one of the most impactful experiences of my life. I learned the difference between systemic and grassroots change. I learned about my own strengths in service and what felt most gratifying for myself. This experience, combined with taking another service-learning course, led me to apply for a second summer of civic engagement with BSP.
Dinner at AFH with Boston DukeEngage cohort
