 The Center now goes way beyond any expectations that we had about what the impact on the people who provided service would be. Civic engagement in public service is really at the heart of what we are meant to do as a public institution. Working with people in the public service center have opened my eyes to things that are happening around here that I didn't even know about and that's inspired me to get involved. What I learned at UC Berkeley and the engagement with the community was just a major defining moment. The Magnolia Project was about a two week trip to Louisiana where we worked with different organizations on the ground who were working to help rebuild Louisiana post hurricane Katrina. I think one of the things that really made it transformational for me was to work with organizations that in some way reflected sort of the upbringing that I had as a kid. My brothers had never finished high school, my parents don't have college degrees so it was pretty radical I would say to think that education would serve you. One organization was doing community work around gardening and then another organization was more political and so I was able to explore these different aspects of my own identity. My time at Cal has inspired me to give back primarily because of the people that I've encountered, that I've worked with, seeing other people leading that charge in a selfless way inspired me to put my energy into service. Too many people say I can't make a difference and it's not true. People really can make a difference. It's about justice and it's about making sure everyone has a chance to live the American dream. Change happens and so we just have to fight and that's what inspires me. Whenever I hear that Berkeley students are somewhere making trouble for the good of the human race I will say go Bears.