My perspective on higher education is constantly evolving. Growing up in rural, agriculturally-focused Northwest Pennsylvania, college was not always at the forefront of my community.  I was raised in a single family household with one parent who pursued dairy farming and another parent, having completed a college degree program, pursued nursing. Coming from a low-income family, I relied upon financial aid and scholarships to attend my first choice college – Allegheny College. I earned my undergraduate degree through a combination of hard work and trial and error; I did not have any family with experience in the college application process and my high school had very little college preparatory resources. This experience informs my perspective today as I seek to make college accessible to all students - traditional, non-traditional, first-generation, and all other underrepresented student groups. 

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As an undergraduate I studied medieval European history and French. I never settled anywhere professionally in the field of history. In fact, upon graduation I found myself reflecting upon my time working in my college's development office. College represented an important time in my life where I came into my own and took charge of something that I, in hindsight, knew little about. The ability to make a career in higher education and help other students find their own path made me feel excited, leading me to Northeastern University. 

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As an M.Ed. student, I have been exposed to nearly all aspects of higher education operation, policy, and trends. Coming from the development and fundraising perspective, I have been especially enamored with courses and subjects that relate to the student experience. I have researched many aspects of being a college student from recruitment, engagement, to student development theory. Having previously studied history, re-focusing on higher education gave my research a relevance that I hadn't experienced before - I was able to get out in the field, consult modern scholars that discussed current and pressing events, and track trends in real time and measure their impact on student populations. 

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At the conclusion of my master's program, one of the many higher education issues that motivates me the most is the journey to create a more equitable education system. I think that the root of this issue lies in college preparedness - given the opportunity I would create equity in the K-12 funding process so that all schools whether they are in wealthy suburbs or low income rural/urban areas have the same opportunities for funding and resources.  As it stands, I think that students who happen to attend wealthier schools have an advantage and are better prepared for college. I hope to be able to give back to the K-12 community to help ensure more students have a chance at higher education success whether through volunteering or non-profit involvement.

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As I continue to move further into the professional field, I have admired the camaraderie that I found both with my peers at Northeastern and in the greater higher education community. I have become a member of the NASPA, Student Affairs Professionals in Higher Education and have been able to network with professionals in my own community. Although I missed the Pittsburgh regional NASPA conference last year, I hope to be able to attend events in the future to stay up to date on research, trends, and the inspiring work fellow higher education professionals are undertaking. 

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