Marcia Eisenstein (Trinity ’06)
Helping low-income students take the road to college
Helping low-income students take the road to college
Growing up in rural Kentucky, Marcia Eisenstein (Trinity ’06) felt
fortunate that her parents were familiar with the college
application process and were able to help her through every step.
At Duke, she decided to work to extend the advantage of such advice
and mentorship to students in Durham. Her brainchild,
College Connection, pairs trained volunteers with
motivated, low-income high school seniors to walk them through the
college application process, from identifying potential colleges to
registering for the SAT to filling out financial aid forms.
In the following interview, Marcia talks about how she and another student, Emily Epstein, developed College Connection, offering some sound advice on starting a service project.
Marcia: Become familiar with your surroundings. Find out about the endless resources Duke provides, and familiarize yourself with the Durham community. For instance, before implementing the college mentoring program, I took the time to familiarize myself with the Durham public schools. I spoke with guidance counselors, principals and students. Successful involvement requires the ability to interact with a variety of people.
LTMD: How did you find mentors to help you pursue your interests in service?
Marcia: The most significant mentor I found was Professor Tony Brown who taught the Enterprising Leadership course I took my sophomore year. Here I developed a relationship with a professor who encouraged me to take what I learned in the classroom and apply it to the real world. Finding mentors, sponsors, and collaborators is a matter of always being cognizant of your surroundings and constantly building your social network. Keep those around you up-to-date on your ideas, your passions, your goals. You never know who might be listening or how they may be able to assist you in the future.
LTMD: What tips do you have for other students for getting support for a civic engagement project?
Marcia: The best thing you can do is talk: to professors, to students, to administrators, to Durham community members. Recognize that becoming civically engaged requires support from other individuals; developing meaningful and sustainable relationships with those other individuals is a key step to ensure your project succeeds.
LTMD: Where do you go from here in pursuing your interests?
Marcia: Civic engagement will always be an interest of mine. Regardless of where I am living and working after I graduate, I envision myself as an active member of that community who encourages others to get involved as well.
LTMD: What do you wish someone had told you about getting involved at Duke?
Marcia: It is not as difficult as it looks! Duke is a unique place: you are surrounded by motivated, intelligent people with similar goals and interests. Galvanizing support from those around you is an extremely powerful resource. Once you build your legitimacy and have a few hardworking individuals on your side, getting involved at Duke becomes a fun and rewarding process.
In the following interview, Marcia talks about how she and another student, Emily Epstein, developed College Connection, offering some sound advice on starting a service project.
LTMD: What first step would you recommend to students who want to get involved in the local community?
Marcia: Become familiar with your surroundings. Find out about the endless resources Duke provides, and familiarize yourself with the Durham community. For instance, before implementing the college mentoring program, I took the time to familiarize myself with the Durham public schools. I spoke with guidance counselors, principals and students. Successful involvement requires the ability to interact with a variety of people.
LTMD: How did you find mentors to help you pursue your interests in service?
Marcia: The most significant mentor I found was Professor Tony Brown who taught the Enterprising Leadership course I took my sophomore year. Here I developed a relationship with a professor who encouraged me to take what I learned in the classroom and apply it to the real world. Finding mentors, sponsors, and collaborators is a matter of always being cognizant of your surroundings and constantly building your social network. Keep those around you up-to-date on your ideas, your passions, your goals. You never know who might be listening or how they may be able to assist you in the future.
LTMD: What tips do you have for other students for getting support for a civic engagement project?
Marcia: The best thing you can do is talk: to professors, to students, to administrators, to Durham community members. Recognize that becoming civically engaged requires support from other individuals; developing meaningful and sustainable relationships with those other individuals is a key step to ensure your project succeeds.
LTMD: Where do you go from here in pursuing your interests?
Marcia: Civic engagement will always be an interest of mine. Regardless of where I am living and working after I graduate, I envision myself as an active member of that community who encourages others to get involved as well.
LTMD: What do you wish someone had told you about getting involved at Duke?
Marcia: It is not as difficult as it looks! Duke is a unique place: you are surrounded by motivated, intelligent people with similar goals and interests. Galvanizing support from those around you is an extremely powerful resource. Once you build your legitimacy and have a few hardworking individuals on your side, getting involved at Duke becomes a fun and rewarding process.