There are many places and lives Kiah Pape touched during her four
years at Duke: helping disadvantage youth, campaigning for child-friendly
government policies, singing in choirs, and acting in a locally produced
Christmas play.
And those opportunities that enabled her to leave a positive imprint
in the community are precisely why she chose to attend Duke, where she'll
graduate this Sunday.
"DukeEngage was actually the reason why I wanted to come to
Duke," Pape said. "I've cultivated the passion from personal
experiences, so I've always known I wanted to work with children and families
in some capacity."
Pape will graduate from Duke with a bachelor's degree in Public Policy
Studies with a focus in Child and Family Policy, and a minor in religion.
She'll also receive a Children in Contemporary Society Certificate.
Just as she had hoped, the underlying thread throughout Pape's Duke
experience has been engaging communities.
In the Duke University Chorale, for example, she chaired the group's community
outreach efforts, which included caroling at the Durham Correctional Center,
Durham Rescue Mission, and Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers
(TROSA).
In addition, her extracurricular work included:
- Interning for the
director of Evidence Based Programs
at Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina; - Creating a
domestic violence protocol through the integration of information from family
centered agencies such as Carolina Outreach and North Carolina Coalition
Against Domestic Violence; - Independent
research study student at Duke Center for Child and Family Policy; - Summer intern at Grandfather
Home Residential Treatment and Charter School in Banner Elk, N.C., where she supervised
and taught music to abused/neglected children; - Research service
learning mentor at YO:Durham.
Pape did find time for recreational activities, volunteering as lead
actress in the Hillsborough Community Players' production of the locally
written musical, "Sanders Family Christmas."
Her musical skills also included serving as a worship leader/singer at
Calvary Chapel in Chapel Hill and social dancing, as in contra, English country,
waltz and rumba.
"It's challenging, but it's rewarding," she said, looking
back at her Duke experience.
"I used to think of community involvement as a way to make a
change in the world. But in courses like 'Civic Engagement' with David Malone
and 'Ethics in an Unjust World' with [Chapel Dean] Sam Wells, I've discovered
that you can't change anything unless you are willing to be changed yourself. The
service-learning components offered by courses like these made that connection
for me. I learned more from hanging out with people in Durham than I learned
from reading social policy textbooks. Duke gets that. I have been blessed
immensely."
After graduation Pape will remain at Duke, beginning a 14-month position
in June as the Robert K. Steel Community Engagement Fellow in Duke's Office of
Durham and Regional Affairs. She will live at Duke Chapel Pathways House with
other recent Duke graduates, which she describes as an "intentional
Christian community."
Her plans once this phase is complete may include pursuing a master's
degree in social work.
And, definitely not least on her list of future plans, Pape is engaged
to Jason Gaskin, a local youth pastor in Durham. They plan to get married next
summer.
Her advice to incoming freshmen: "Get to know the people and
places in Durham. Duke is a wealthy place but it belongs to an even wealthier
community."