Katie Atkins

When I arrived at Vassar as a freshman, I had no idea who I really was or what I wanted to do with my life, let alone my time in college. I was shy, quiet, and unsure of myself.

But now that it's time to go, I can safely say that I know who I am, and I know where I'm going. So many different things about Vassar have helped me to figure that out, from the classes I've taken, to the friends I've made, to all those "deep" conversations about life that never fail to materialize, whether they happen in the All Campus Dining Center or at the Mug.

But when I think of the experiences that have defined me during my time at Vassar, my mind goes to two specific things. Two things that I can point to and say, "These experiences changed me, inspired me, and made me who I am."

The first experience began when I joined ACT OUT! my freshman year. I had known even before I got to Vassar that I wanted to join a group for queer students, so on the day of the activities fair during freshman orientation, I looked around for any sign of a rainbow flag that would signify the queer organizations. When I finally saw one on the table for ACT OUT! I hesitated before walking over, nervous because I hadn't come out yet and I didn't really want anyone to see me. But I eventually worked up the courage and signed my name on their email list.

The act of signing my name on that list was one of the most important things I've ever done. I started attending ACT OUT! meetings, where I met other queer people for the first time in my life, and I started participating in LGBTQ activism. It was at this point that I started to come out to people. But, even then, I still couldn't fully embrace my queer identity.

That changed one night when ACT OUT! got together after a day of chalking in the college center circle. We met up in the seminar room in the library to eat some rainbow cakeand hang out. Somehow, we ended up going around the table and telling our coming out stories. Hearing everyone else's stories, and being able to share mine, made me feel like, for the first time, I wasn't alone. I had a found a community, and it was ACT OUT!

The second experience began with a class: Domestic Violence. This class ignited something inside me that I couldn't ignore – a passion and a need to become involved in the Battered Women's movement. So, in the summer after my sophomore year, I became an intern at Battered Women's Services in Poughkeepsie, working as a domestic violence counselor/advocate. Starting this internship was almost like an awakening. It was like someone flipped a switch and I suddenly knew: this is what I want to do with my life. Since that first internship I haven't been able to stop, and have continued to work at BWS in several different capacities for the last two years.

Thinking back to that first internship, I really can't believe how different things are now. Answering the crisis hotline used to make me so anxious that I would jump when the phone rang. The first time I went to Family Court, I didn't even know what floor I needed to go to, let alone how to help a client petition for an order of protection. Now the security guards and lawyers wave to me, and the court clerk knows me by name. I've helped clients through more petitions and court appearances than I can count.

Through these two experiences, I have discovered my passion for social justice. But I have also discovered myself.

Though my formal Vassar education is something I will forever value, I believe that the education Vassar has given me outside of the classroom is just as crucial. Thanks to those experiences, I am no longer the shy, quiet, and unsure person of four years ago. Instead, as I leave Vassar, I am confident, passionate, and excited for what the future may bring.

—Katie Atkins is the outgoing president of ACT OUT!