Name: Delaney Walch
Class Year: 2024
Title: Assistant Director, Donelan Office of Community-Based Learning, Teaching, and Engaged Scholarship
Organization: College of the Holy Cross
1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?
I support CBL courses by coordinating student volunteer placements, fostering partnerships with 50+ community organizations, and facilitating student leadership and civic engagement opportunities.
2. What planned and unplanned events connected you to your industry and your first employer after Holy Cross? How did you learn/decide it was a good fit for you?
Funnily enough, I can trace a line from my very first HC course, my Montserrat, to my first employer after Holy Cross, L’Arche Boston North. I learned about L’Arche communities in class, which are made up of folks with and without disabilities who share life together. I felt a call to learn more!
I took a trip to the L’Arche community in D.C. through the Spring Break Immersion Program and then spent two summers living in the L’Arche Boston North community. When I received an email in June after graduation that an Assistant Manager position in LBN’s Culinary Program was open, I was ecstatic to return to the community and continue to support adults with disabilities in living meaning-filled lives! I still remain in touch with and visit my friends in the L’Arche Boston North community.
For my current role, I had a feeling I would return to Holy Cross one day, which was largely motivated by my experience as a CBL Intern. As an intern, I enjoyed facilitating student reflections on their service experiences, as each interaction taught me more about the non-profit organizations in Worcester and the essential work they do to address social justice issues in our community. I had a desire to return to Worcester to continue engaging and learning with community members, and felt called to support students who were in a similar position as I was, which led me back to the Donelan Office!
3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?
I was a CBL Intern, through which I volunteered with the WPS Transition Program and Summit Agency, and helped support the Non-Profit Careers Conference. Additionally, I was Co-Chair of Fusion Hip-Hop Dance Team, Intern for the Office of Government and Community Relations, Counseling Outreach Peer Educator, and Spring Break Immersion Program Leader.
4. What was your major and how did it affect your career decisions?
I was a Neuroscience major (which felt like a perfect combination of my first two majors, Biology and Psychology). I was pre-med up until the summer before my senior year, which largely guided my academic focus, but I’ve always had an admiration for the brain, specifically in the context of mental disorders and understanding bias. Now, I continue to utilize neuroscience principles to guide my work in supporting students and analyzing social justice issues, especially as I complete my Master’s in Social Work.
5. What are one or two skills that you developed at Holy Cross that you use in your work?
A skill developed at HC that I often use in my work is relationship-building. What I am able to learn about others’ passions, stories, and needs often guides my decision making processes in collaborative work!
6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?
If there is something you’ve always wanted to try, now is the time! For me, it was dance, and I’m so glad I joined Fusion here. HC has many amazing programs and student organizations that you should take advantage of during your time on-campus, as these sorts of engagements are harder to find (and often more costly) in post-graduate life.