My first-year to junior year, I was heavily involved in the Resident Student Association here at Pitt. The organization advocates and programs for students living in resident halls. My first year I served as a hall council member, my sophomore year I served as the Vice President of Communications/National Communications Coordinator and my junior year I was the conference chairperson for a 400 event made up of RSA members from other colleges and universities. The conference theme was RLC the world and emphasized cultural competency as an essential leadership principle. The conference had many events and educational sessions around diversity, equity, and inclusion for the student leaders to bring back to use at their home institutions. RLC the world was the biggest task I’ve ever accomplished. I led a team of 25 chair and advisors, managed a budget of $100,000 and communicated to the attendees updates about the conference throughout the year leading up to it.

Locally, I’ve volunteered with the Day One Project since my first year at Pitt. The Day One Project helps single parent families get back on their feet through providing house and educational sessions on Saturday mornings. During those sessions, I provided childcare for the parents. I loved going to Obama High School in East Liberty a few Saturdays each semester and hanging out with the kids. They would brighten my day and after a while, they started to remember my name. Day One Project is doing a fantastic job in serving underserved populations in Pittsburgh.

Globally, I volunteered at Newcastle University in Sydney while I studied abroad. We were tasked with helping international students practice speaking English. They would talk about something they were interested in and we would respond back. It was a great way to get to know them as well as helping them improve their confidence with speaking in English. This volunteering opportunity was a great experience for me.