Class Year: 2028
Cohort: Education
Organization you serve: Opportunities for Otsego at HeadStart
About me
I am a rising junior at SUNY Oneonta majoring in Early Childhood/Childhood Education with a minor in Educational Psychology. This is my second year with the Empire State Service Corps, Education Cohort, with a placement at Opportunities for Otsego at the HeadStart location. I have always enjoyed working with children and have spent the past four summers as a camp counselor, as well as a substitute teacher on my breaks from school.
I am particularly interested in working with children with autism, as well as students from lower-income socioeconomic backgrounds. My experience with Head Start has given me a glimpse into the amazing families and educational professionals who do this important work. I am excited to continue learning from these experiences and to grow as a future educator through the Empire State Service Corps.
Why I serve
I was inspired to join the Empire State Service Corps when I learned about the various opportunities to serve the community. I have always been incredibly passionate about being involved in the community, and I have been volunteering since I was very young. I felt very drawn to this program because of the opportunity that it presented to emerge myself in the Oneonta Community.
Fun Fact
The way that I found out about the Empire State Service Corps was through a tabling event on campus. The recruiter for this program was offering bubble wands as you passed by the table. I ended up being very interested in the bubbles and I made a deal with the woman that if I applied right then and there I would be able to take two bubble wands instead of one. This ended up being one of the best decisions I could have made in terms of finding my passion of working with students from low socioeconomic standings, and meeting incredible people at the HeadStart location where I was placed. Not only did I get two bubble wands from this exchange, but I also ended up with a job that changed my college experience for the better.
