ETSU Student Adam Derrick's Future Became Clear Through AmeriCorps

From East Tennessee State University:

After finishing an undergraduate degree at another university, Adam Derrick wasn’t quite sure what they wanted to do next. It was at this crossroad that Adam “stumbled” into the AmeriCorps program.

And from there, the future suddenly became clear.

Adam’s first AmeriCorps assignment was in Austin working with College Forward, an organization that assisted first-generation and low-income students in setting higher education goals and helping them succeed. Adam served as a mentor to these students and loved the experience.

A second AmeriCorps assignment brought Adam back to East Tennessee to help with the Second Harvest Food Bank’s summer program that helped disperse food to kids. Adam would continue working with Second Harvest on other contracts and quickly realized they wanted a career in service.

“I can’t see myself doing a job that isn’t helping the community,” Adam said. “In whatever way I can, I want to always be tangibly helping meet the needs of the people around me.

“I knew what I wanted to do, but I needed the degree and training in order to be as competitive as I hoped to be.”

Adam, who is a native of Boone, North Carolina, was familiar with ETSU and began looking at master’s programs. With a dream of working in the non-profit sector, the human services program offered by the Clemmer College was a natural fit.

“The program is very broad and has allowed me to learn where my niche might be,” Adam said.

In addition to being accepted into the graduate program, Adam learned their graduate assistantship assignment would be in the new Patricia L. Robertson Pride Center.

“I really felt like I had won the lottery,” Adam said. “My job with the center is to help maintain this really cool space and work toward having programming, resources, and education about sexuality and gender for our students.

“When I think about my work here in the center, I reflect on what it was like for me as an undergraduate. What did I need? What did I feel? What would I have wanted? As someone who identifies as LGBTQ+, I felt like I needed a mentor when I was in college…someone who walked me through what it was like to be gay or queer and what it was like to come into adulthood and not be in the norm of sexuality and gender,” Adam said. “For a lot of LGBTQ+ students, college is the first time when they can fully express themselves, and that can be a positive experience but can also come with negative baggage. Students don’t always have mentors within LGBTQ+ spaces, so as I moved into this new role, my past experience helped guide what I wanted the center to be to my fellow students.”

Adam said the Robertson Pride Center is a critical connection point with other campus organizations, such as SAGA (Sexuality and Gender Alliance), the ETSU Faculty/Staff LGBTQ+ Association, and the Mary V. Jordan Multicultural Center, as well as TriPride, the Pride Education Center, PFLAG and other community groups.

Another important community connection for them has been working in the local theater scene. Adam, whose undergraduate degree is in theater, currently serves on the board for the Johnson City Community Theatre.

“My favorite part of theater is the community,” Adam said. “It doesn’t matter what I’m doing, whether I’m on stage, stage managing, turning on the lights or helping with the box office…it’s the community of people coming together that makes it special.”

This press release was produced by East Tennessee State University. The views expressed are the author's own.