Kelsie graduated from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, where she majored in Religious Studies and Art History. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Art History at her first-choice graduate school, John Cabot University, based in Rome, Italy. For the next fifteen months Kelsi will be studying abroad, fully immersing herself in the culture and history she’s learning about. Her hope for the future is to continue her education and work in museums with a focus on ethical curation of artifacts.
Between college and graduate school, Kelsie spent a year of service as an Americorps VISTA in a transitional shelter for homeless, runaway, and at risk young men in Western New York. Kelsie says, “the sense of community and the understanding of the hardships facing the world that I cultivated at New Roots inspired me to take a year and dedicate myself to service and contributing to the world in a way that would truly make a difference.” Kelsie says that her focus on access to good nutrition and healthy food during her time as an Americorps VISTA was inspired by the New Roots lunch program.
Kelsie says, “going to New Roots didn’t just let me graduate high school and go on to college. It changed how I view the world, giving me the interdisciplinary lens a traditional education doesn’t have. I know I don’t have to choose one passion over another but I can find a way to make a connection and move forward from there.”
She continues, “New Roots helped me explore my interests and think about where I want to go in life. My definition of success is being happy and comfortable with where you are and what path you’re on.”