Honors College student Mallory Vollbrecht (‘21, SAS/HC), a senior majoring in Cell Biology/Neuroscience and Psychology on a pre-med track, currently serves as the Philanthropy and Outreach Lead for the HC Serves Leadership Team. However, her experience with service work dates all the way back to her elementary school days where she first served by helping to care for the gardens surrounding her school. Though originally prompted to participate in this service work by her mother, it provided Mallory a glimpse into the true impacts service can create, as she reflects, “Even now, more than twelve years later, the work we did is still present and the whole building looks cleaner and happier.”
Mallory brought her love of service to Rutgers, where she participated in two service trips: one through the Alternative Breaks program to Washington D.C. focused on hunger and homelessness, and the other through Global Brigades on a medical, dental, and public health trip to Panama. Additionally, she was an HC Ally mentor to younger HC students to help them acclimate to college and served as vice president the following year, which she says turned out to be one of her favorite experiences through the Honors College. Moreover, she fondly recalls enjoying many other smaller service events the HC has hosted over the past four years, “from blood drives to painting nights to learning how to make hats.” Mallory explains, “Service comes in all shapes and sizes, and I feel that Rutgers and the Honors College really embody that.”
In reflecting upon the whole of her service experiences, Mallory expresses,
“Service has, above all, made me more reflective and empathetic. I think that this generally comes from interacting with people who have different life experiences, but I’ve found that service work tends to make us all a little bit more vulnerable.”
She elaborates, “The conversations I’ve had during or surrounding service have changed me more than anything, and I’ve spent a lot of time confronting my biases and privileges as a result.”
Upon graduating from Rutgers this spring, Mallory plans to continue her pursuit of meaningful service. “Although I may not have opportunities like HC Serves to fully immerse myself in planning and attending service events,” she says, “service comes in so many forms. I’m excited to find out what unique opportunities will be available wherever I end up after graduating! My plan is to stay active in searching out ways to give back.”