By Shayla K. Vance

Meet Cassidy Coiner, a Missouri State University student who found her career path through service-learning. After her first year at Missouri State, she discovered her passion for event planning and began focusing her educational experience on management.

As an Entertainment Management major, Cassidy enrolled in a service-learning course and volunteered with the Vision Rehabilitation Center of the Ozarks for her class project. During the 40 hours of service she completed for the course, Cassidy helped with a variety of projects such as:

• Coordinating fundraisers that benefit people who struggle with vision problems
• Meeting with VRCO staff and community partners
• Securing event sponsors

She fell in love with the VRCO’s mission and developed a great connection with the staff. Shortly after completing her service project, Cassidy was offered an interview for a paid position with the VRCO. She accepted the offer and began the interview process alongside other candidates, many of whom had already graduated college. With the hands-on experience and professional connections she gained through service-learning, Cassidy was able to present herself as a competitive candidate and was hired as the new Event Coordinator.

Cassidy is just one of many students who has found career success through service-learning. As a part of Missouri State University’s public affairs mission, the office of Citizenship and Service-Learning strives to provide students like Cassidy with meaningful career experiences while also giving back to the community. With her distinguished professional skills, Cassidy is certainly going to excel in her new position.

Learn more about service-learning’s connection to career by visiting our website and follow CASL on Twitter to keep up with all things service-learning at Missouri State University.