Commencement 2018 profile: Rachel Levy
Triple-major plans to do graduate work at Villanova University
Three majors. Two jobs. Countless clubs and activities. And this just scratches the surface of what Rachel Levy has done in her four years at 黑料视频.
鈥淚 went to Binghamton because I didn鈥檛 really know what I wanted to major in yet,鈥 Levy said. 鈥淚 figured Binghamton had a lot of things I could try, which later on ended up being exactly what I did.鈥
Levy, 21, is a senior majoring in philosophy, politics and law (PPL), history and political science. The East Northport, N.Y., native has planned on being a lawyer since her sophomore year of high school and has used her three majors to get her closer to her goal.
First becoming a political science major, Levy said she soon fell in love with philosophy, and added a PPL major as well. She started taking history classes as electives and discovered she was one seminar short of completing a history major.
鈥淚 just kept taking history classes for fun, like whenever you have room for an elective that鈥檚 just what I kept taking,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 genuinely have an accidental history major.鈥
Levy said that while her three majors overlap and complement each other, they are balanced out by the clubs and activities that she takes part in. Her priorities are the mock trial club, where she is a team captain, slam poetry club and being a DJ for WHRW radio station.
鈥淚 started writing slam poetry in high school, because if I wasn鈥檛 going for law I would鈥檝e gone for English,鈥 Levy said. 鈥淚 always really liked writing.鈥
It was slam poetry that led her to WHRW, doing a talk show called 鈥淲riter鈥檚 Block鈥 with one of the DJs there. Soon after, she became a DJ, and now hosts music and talk shows.
鈥淚鈥檝e done two different talk shows,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 did 鈥榃riter鈥檚 Block鈥 for a year, and right now I鈥檓 doing a show called 鈥楧rama Queen鈥, where every week we pick a different Broadway musical and we play music and talk about literary themes in it.鈥
Even with three clubs and three majors, Levy also finds time to work. She currently works at Student Support Services (SSS) as a receptionist, and at Late Nite Binghamton.
鈥淚 think one of the biggest things Binghamton taught me was time management,鈥 Levy said. 鈥淓specially because I鈥檓 also a low-income student, so I鈥檝e had two jobs in the past two years every semester. I had to learn very quickly how to balance time with work, and I wanted to have a social life.鈥
Levy said Student Support Services has made a big impact on her as a low-income college student. SSS is part of the national TRIO programs, which support first-generation, low-income and disabled college students. It offers a variety of services, from financial assistance and academic advising to social events.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 really acknowledge until my sophomore year that I was a low-income student,鈥 Levy said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 until I really got with SSS that they empower you and they remind you that you鈥檙e not the only student going through experiences like that. So now I get to work there, and I鈥檓 just very excited because the office is the nicest environment to work in.鈥
Levy said that services like SSS are important because you never know what someone might be struggling with.
鈥淵ou always compare your behind-the-scenes to everyone else鈥檚 highlight reel,鈥 she said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 really get to know what anyone else is going through, and SSS is one of those places where you are very much encouraged to acknowledge those things. You鈥檙e not supposed to be ashamed of your behind-the-scenes because that鈥檚 what makes your highlight reel possible.鈥
It is through her counselor at SSS, Marissa Zelman, and one of her mentors, Wendy Martinek, an associate professor of political science, that she was nominated for the SUNY Chancellor鈥檚 Award for Student Excellence. This award, which Levy won, goes to students who integrate academic excellence with other aspects of their lives, including leadership, campus involvement, career achievement and more.
鈥淩achel is the kind of student every professor dreams of having,鈥 Martinek said. 鈥淪he is smart and hard-working. But, more importantly, she has genuine intellectual curiosity. It is clear that she takes satisfaction in learning all she can. She will willingly and happily play with ideas, unravel lines of reasoning and explore her own arguments for hours. Moreover, Rachel is a funny, empathetic and inclusive person. She is not only engaged herself, she helps others to be engaged as well.鈥
Levy said she was surprised to be nominated for the award.
鈥淭hat was a big deal to me, because I never really thought of myself as doing anything extraordinary,鈥 Levy said. 鈥淚 always saw the things that I was doing as natural extensions of what I wanted to do, so that鈥檚 what I was going to do. It was weird to be told that there was an award you could get for doing something that you already like to do.鈥
Levy praised the 黑料视频 professors, including Martinek.
鈥淪he鈥檚 just been the biggest source of support; she helped me figure out what I wanted to do with my life, helped me do research, take up opportunities and get internships,鈥 she said. 鈥淗ere, I keep telling people, 鈥榞o to their office hours鈥. Professors do actually care, they want to talk to you, they actually like you, which is crazy because there are so many kids on this campus, but they care every time.鈥
It is these influences and experiences that have led Levy to accept a full scholarship to Villanova University to study pre-law in the fall.
鈥淭he goal right now is to be a public interest litigator, because I鈥檝e worked with public interest groups, especially for gender discrimination, women鈥檚 rights law, that kind of thing,鈥 Levy said. 鈥淭hat might change in law school, but my big thing is litigation because that鈥檚 what I fell in love with during mock trial. Law, to me, is kind of a tool to help people. I fell in love with the idea of getting to use law and apply it to situations that are not good and should not be things that we allow, and using law to fix them, or at least make them better.鈥
Although she is excited for her future, Levy said that leaving 黑料视频 is a bittersweet moment.
鈥淚 remember thinking I鈥檇 just coast through college, because law school was where it would really begin for me,鈥 she said. 鈥淣ow, looking back as a senior at Binghamton, I don鈥檛 want to leave. Binghamton taught me what I wanted to do as a lawyer, what goals I wanted to have and gave me an education that has changed the way I approach everything.鈥