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Why Walter chose Rider

With dreams of becoming a history teacher, Walter was drawn to Rider by the reputation of its education program. When he toured campus, it was love at first sight. “It was beautiful. And the way the tour guide talked about Rider and the education program made me want to go there,” he says. But the “number one reason” he chose Rider: the classroom size. “I knew I’d get the attention I needed.”

Rider's impact on Walter's success

As an Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) student, Walter attended a summer program where he took an introductory composition course with Dr. Jane Rosenbaum. “She made me fall in love with writing,” says Walter, who changed his major to English. He later added a minor in Gender and Sexuality Studies after taking Michele D’Angelo’s class “Race, Class and Gender.” “That class changed the direction of my career,” he says.

Walter became increasingly involved in campus organizations and activities, including community service work — delivering food to New York’s homeless through the Midnight Run program and working with homeless kids on an Earth Day event at HomeFront Inc. in Trenton. Both provided valuable experiences and connections that paved the way to future jobs. “My professors always said networking is the way the world works — and it’s true! My experiences and the people I met opened the door to more opportunities,” he says.

Continued success

His volunteer work led to a job as a summer counselor at HomeFront’s camp for homeless children. It was there Walter that met a YWCA supervisor, which led to a job at the YWCA’s after-school program during his junior and senior years and an internship working with the YWCA’s morning preschool class.

While a senior, Walter followed up on a tip from the human resources director at HomeFront and applied for a position there through AmeriCorps Vista. He was hired as a development associate and spent the next year helping to build awareness of HomeFront’s successful $6 million Family Campus Campaign.

After completing that assignment, he went to work full-time as a HomeFront case manager helping Mercer County’s HIV homeless population access treatment, medication, housing, clothing and food. “Things just fell into place,” says Walter. “I got a job helping the homeless and using what I learned in my minor.” Walter recently took a job with the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency as a family service specialist.