STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

Mailyn Greig-Ratz, a senior who designed her own interdisciplinary studies major called Food Outreach Studies, served as one of the Peer Leaders on an Alternative Service Experience (ASE) program called “Growing Up Green.” This ASE program works with the Jones Valley Teaching Farm, which has been an ASE partner for more than a decade.

Laouratou Boiro is a senior psychology major and a fourth-year recipient of the Diversity Scholarship. “Being a part of the Diversity Scholars family, I have had the opportunity to connect to and learn from my fellow scholars and program leaders who hold varying perspectives and identities. Having challenging discussions, I have been empowered to be more inclusive of various ideologies and take action towards making the greater App State Community a safe place for diverse, marginalized students such as myself. The program’s commitment to service has strengthened my passion for service and allowed me to take great efforts in becoming involved with the campus community. These experiences have truly aided in my personal growth and I am so grateful to be a part of a community where I am surrounded with support from diverse-identifying students who are academically driven and inclusively minded. It has been an honor to be a part of this great community and I will look back at the positive experiences I have had as a Diversity Scholar fondly.”

Rylan O'Connor is a Plemmons Scholar. “The Plemmons Leadership Scholars Program has allowed me to experience and empathize with the community of Boone not just as an App State Student, but also as a volunteer, a leader, an advocate and a friend Additionally, being a Plemmons Scholar has helped me recognize who I am as an individual by providing me with countless opportunities to strengthen my leadership skills, explore my interests and take action on what matters to me. Plemmons has been a strong support system throughout my years at Appalachian and will have a lifelong impact on how I view community, leadership and empathy ”