class of 2020

“When I was a freshman in high school, I met a girl named Sabrina in my swim class. The first time I looked at her and she smiled, I could see her eyes sparkle with love and adventure. I knew right then we would be wonderful friends. She taught me to love unconditionally, to never take a moment for granted, and that there is never a bad time in life to dance. She has truly made me a better person. I joke that she didn’t want to be my friend at first. But she was really just homesick because she had just moved away from political turmoil in Venezuela. A few years before meeting Sabrina, a psychic told me that I would help someone who had moved, and she would become very important to my life. I believe it was destiny for me to meet Sabrina.”

“A very pivotal experience for me as a first-year student was the fall rush process for Greek life. I knew little about the fraternities on campus, but my roommate told me I should check out Alpha Tau Omega. When I went to their rush events it felt like more than a social club, but rather a true brotherhood where the brothers genuinely cared about not just each other but others as well. Joining Alpha Tau Omega has allowed me to branch out to new friendships and opportunities on campus, and it has definitely had a tremendously positive impact on my first year at college and beyond.”

“The last three summers I have volunteered for a program called Horizons which provides reading and math education to children from the inner city of Philadelphia over the summer for free. All of the children I work with – kindergarten to fifth grade – have suffered through some traumatic home life circumstance from simply great poverty to the murder of parents. As someone who had a very privileged childhood with a very stable family life, this job opened my eyes to a whole other side of the community I lived in and revealed some incorrect biases I had been viewing others with. These children, despite their circumstances, are intelligent, kind, funny, and innocent. I realized it was not them who lacked the ability to succeed but that our society failed to provide them resources to overcome their unfair circumstances. Because of this, I am now devoted to pursuing a career in education reform.”

“When I was in the ninth grade my family went through a period of financial hardship. We lived without electricity for four months, during which I would boil water on a gas stove to take a bath, do homework by candlelight and travel to my grandparents’ house to charge my phone or watch TV. The only reason we managed to get out of our situation was the generosity and love shown to us by my grandparents and friends of our family. This has made me realize that one of the differences between me and the thousands of people living on the street in Nashville and my home Pretoria (South Africa) is that we had a strong support system. I believe it is of the utmost importance for us as a society to ensure that systems are set in place which ensure that all human beings have a safety net or support system that guarantees their basic human rights. In countries like the U.S. you have more than enough resources to do this, so it’s quite appalling that it isn’t a reality.”

“In eighth grade, I started public school. I didn’t know anyone in the school, but I walked over to a close-by table and stood. The kids were talking and having a good time but not recognizing me. Then one kid looked up and asked me if I wanted to share his seat. I sat down and began talking. Because of that inclusion, I made friends I would know throughout high school.”

“One event that has changed my life was getting into Vanderbilt University. It was my dream school, and I was so excited to get in. My best friend from home also got in, and we were both so excited to go to college together. Nashville is such a cool city to live in, and coming to Vanderbilt has been so amazing and opened up so many new opportunities.”

“Working in retail was definitely an experience that taught me a lot about responding to clients – and how tiresome doing so can be. Doing so made me much more appreciative of the intricate step-by-step processes that go into selling apparel and keeping inventory as well as cashiering and filling orders. Being able to fulfill all the necessary tasks that were required of me on an everyday basis was certainly rewarding but definitely not an experience I would want to repeat.”

“When I was 14 years old I started volunteering at Camp SOAR. Camp SOAR is an average overnight camp with arts and crafts, swimming, games, snacks and basically all other camp-like activities. The only difference is at Camp SOAR each counselor is paired up with one camper who has a moderate to severe disability. My first camper’s name was Quincy, and saying she changed my life would be a huge understatement. For the week I spent every hour of every day listening to Quincy sing Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” or watching her figure out new crafts she could make. Quincy wasn’t a camper to me, she was a friend. I’ve been a counselor at Camp SOAR every summer and don’t plan on stopping any time in the near future. I still talk to Quincy about what’s happening in her life and how high school is going. This upcoming summer is the year she graduates camp. Starting Camp SOAR altered my life in a huge way. I’m now a Special Education major and plan on teaching in my own classroom. I owe almost all of that to Quincy.”

“During the summer before my junior year in high school I volunteered at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital as part of their STRIVE program. It changed my life because it really filled in me a desire for service and working with the kids there. I decided that I wanted to go to medical school and become a pediatric oncologist. It taught me that I could make a difference.”

“I am passionate about working with individuals with disabilities. My passion began when my cousin was born with a defective heart. Our family had to learn how to interact with her given her disability. My cousin, Ellie, has given us all a tolerance and love for individuals with special needs. Because of Ellie, I started a peer-mentoring program at my high school for students with disabilities. I am also majoring in Special Education and hope to one day make a positive impact on my students’ lives. At Vanderbilt, I also am a volunteer for Nashville Dolphins and a Next Steps Ambassadore. I love working with people with special needs because they often have an innocence and happiness that is, frankly, uncommon in today’s society. I think people with disabilities should not be defined and labeled by their lack of ability, but rather their unique and extraordinary abilities.”