Kenzi Seay, a senior criminology and criminal justice major, has organized the Kids Donation Drive in coordination with the Greene County Family Justice Center (FJC).

Seay is collecting donations until April 14. The organization is asking for toys, books or children’s hygiene products.

Collections boxes will be available across campus until April 7. A collection box will remain in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice main office (Strong Hall, Room 207) until April 14.

But even after April 14, people can still help out.

“The Family Justice Center is always collecting donations for victims of domestic violence,” Seay said. “They also have volunteer opportunities, if you’d like to help in a hands-on way.”

Public affairs mission in action

According to senior instructor Caryn Saxon, the Kids Donation Drive was entirely Seay’s initiative and serves as an excellent example of Missouri State’s public affairs mission.

“I could not be more impressed and proud of Kenzi’s work on this,” Saxon noted. “She observed a problem, created a solution and then took action to make her vision a reality. Through her efforts, she is spreading awareness about FJC while also giving others a way to contribute to their mission.”

Seay volunteers at FJC and also interns with its partner agency, Legal Services of Southern Missouri. She began volunteering in October 2024 and started her internship in January 2025. Her duties include answering phones, clerical work and intake interviews.

“It’s a really interesting experience working as both an intern and volunteer in different parts of the building because I am able to see the process from start to finish in different roles,” she noted.

Certificate programs shaped career goals

In addition to her criminology and criminal justice major, Seay is pursuing certificates in victim advocacy and criminal courts through the department. She also added a certificate in forensic child psychology, which is offered through the School of Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences.

The criminology and criminal justice department’s variety of certificate options in particular steered Seay toward her career goal as a domestic violence victim advocate.

“I had never heard of victim advocacy before and wanted to learn more,” she explained. “My interest really picked up when I took courses in domestic violence and trauma-informed care.”

“The undergraduate certificate in victim advocacy is a relatively new addition to our school’s academic offerings, and Kenzi is a perfect example of why we wanted to create this certificate,” Saxon said. “Victim services is an important part of what justice looks like in our communities, and we want our students to understand how they can support and serve victims of crime.”

Professors a source of support and encouragement

Seay described her overall experience at Missouri State as “incredibly supportive,” especially within the criminology and criminal justice program. “All of my professors really care and show that they want every one of us to succeed,” she said.

Seay first met Saxon when she enrolled in her Corrections course and singled her our for special praise.

“From the very beginning, in my first class with her, she was constantly there whenever I needed a little extra support,” Seay said of Saxon. “She’s guided me through finding where I want to be and helping me find opportunities wherever I can. Without her, I’m not sure I would be where I am today.”

Seay has since taken several classes with Saxon, including Restorative Justice, Victim Advocacy and her current independent study in Child Victimization. In addition, Seay cited senior instructor Paula Rector’s Domestic Violence class as instrumental in helping her truly understand domestic violence.

“For one assignment, she [Rector] required us to attend the Stop the Violence conference,” Seay explained. “This was where I first found out about places like Harmony House and the Family Justice Center. After that, I was instantly driven to learn more.”

Volunteer and internship opportunities inspire

When Seay started her directed reading course with Saxon, she did not know what she wanted to do as a final project. She soon homed in on the donation drive as a project idea because of what she observed at the FJC.

“Children were often frustrated and acting out as their parent(s) spoke with staff,” she explained. “However, these behaviors are common for children with adverse childhood experiences.”

She sought advice from a staff member at FJC to see what she could do to help.

“That’s when the donation drive started to come to life,” she said. “I wanted to give kids an experience where they feel seen, to divert them from the trauma into something they will remember as a moment of relief.”

Becca Bucy, Seay’s supervisor at FJC, praised Seay’s efforts and attitude.

“Kenzi is passionate about working with children and adults who are experiencing trauma, and her dedication to our clients is inspiring for our entire team,” Bucy said.

“Everyone in this field working with victims inspires me,” Seay said. “I’ve never seen a group of people with such intentionality and empathy. At the Family Justice Center, the people around me are constantly working to do every single thing they can for each individual that comes in. I constantly strive to do better and keep growing in what I do because of them.”

Learning to speak up for herself and others

Ironically, for someone so committed to being a voice for others, Seay struggled to find her own voice. She found learning to network as a future professional particularly challenging.

“Out of everything, networking was something I had to learn for the drive,” she explained. “I was constantly needing to step out of my comfort zone and reach out to new people. If you light a fire in people, they will show up and help out, but you must be willing to communicate with them to do that.”

Seay understands just how important this learning experience is to her career goals.

“Victim advocates are constantly needing to reach out to people in the community and be a voice for victims, so networking skills are a must,” she said.

Despite the challenges, however, Seay knows she has found her purpose.

“I had never known what my calling was,” Seay said. “It was something that always left me confused, wondering where I was expected to be in life. As I started to learn about the experiences of victims and what advocacy looked like, I knew this was where I was meant to be.”

 

Explore opportunities in Criminology and Criminal Justice

 

---

Photo credits: Annisa Rahmani except where otherwise indicated.