Karly Rees is a catcher for 宾州州立大学白兰地酒's softball team.
:第三
主要:业务
选择:会计
Involvement: Student-athlete for 白兰地酒 softball team; president, Student-Athlete Advisory Council; peer mentor, Lion Guidez; teacher’s assistant (TA), 一年级的课程
白兰地酒: What was your deciding factor in coming to 宾州州立大学白兰地酒?
里斯: Softball brought me to this campus specifically, but I was looking at Penn State anyway. I think knowing that you can get a Penn State degree at a smaller campus was definitely enticing because there are a lot more resources available and smaller class sizes. 离家不远, 但远到能找到自己的地方, and I could get some independence while not going too far away.
白兰地酒:你是怎么选择专业的?
里斯: I was always interested in business and it's a big part of the world. There’s always going to be a need for people in business, so that's where I went first. Accounting was more interesting to me than finance or anything like that. 我的兄弟姐妹都是会计师，他们让我接触到了这个话题.
白兰地酒: What challenges have you faced at 白兰地酒, if any?
里斯: One of the big challenges in my first year was living with somebody who didn't go here. I lived with a high school friend off-campus, so I wasn't involved on campus. I started to notice that I wasn't involved as everybody was starting to get to know each other, 我感到孤独，因为我谁也不认识. 来学校只是为了上课和练习是不够的. 如果我能回到过去, I would try to involve myself in the beginning and as everybody else is, 因为这比事后努力建立要容易得多.
白兰地酒: 白兰地酒有谁支持过你，又是如何支持你的?
里斯: 体育主任波比·卡普赖斯一直很支持我. 我可以找她倾诉任何事情. 她总是告诉我们运动员，她的政策是开放的, 所以如果她在办公室, 她在这里，我们可以无话不谈. Myeisha Matos(招聘), retention and alumni coordinator) invited me to be her TA last year, 哪个是好机会. 这让我更多地看到了自己的潜力. 现在, I’m Bill Tyson’s (director of strategic communications) TA. It’s nice to be a teacher’s assistant for these people because they get to know me on a more professional level in addition to me being a student.
白兰地酒: What has been your greatest accomplishment at 白兰地酒 so far?
里斯: 我的累积平均分一直保持在3分.99，所以这可能是我最大的成就之一. 我一直很关心我的成绩, 所以能够跟上这一点对我来说很重要. 随着专业的深入, 显然我没有强调太多, but it's nice when I can keep up with the standards that I set for myself. Winning the Small College World Series was also such a great feeling.
白兰地酒: What made you interested in joining the softball team? 你最喜欢的是什么?
里斯: 马克·卡塞塔(垒球总教练)是一名出色的招聘人员. 他看了我所有的比赛，而且非常坚持不懈. 然后，我看到了这个紧密团结的团队的获胜潜力. I thought Coach was similar to coaches I've had in the past, so that was intriguing to me. 我在队里交了很多朋友, and I wanted to be involved in athletics for as long as I could. I had originally planned on doing the 2+2 program, but I decided to stay here all four years. 白兰地酒垒球对我的影响很大.
白兰地酒:是什么让你对成为助教感兴趣? 你最喜欢的是什么?
里斯: I've always been interested in sharing what I've learned and the things that I've gone through with people who are going through it now. 我知道一开始很难参与进来. Also, I have good strategies for time management, and I never miss a deadline. 我认为在这方面我是一个好榜样. Being able to share tips and advice with the first-year students is very valuable.
"Being involved and knowing all these people makes me want to spend more time on campus, 这让我感激校园所拥有的一切."—Karly Rees , third-year business major, 宾州州立大学白兰地酒
白兰地酒: With your involvement at 白兰地酒, how has your time on campus been impacted?
里斯: 参与其中确实让我更想待在校园里. Before I was involved, I didn't really see a point in being here except to go to class. Being involved and knowing all these people makes me want to spend more time on campus, 这让我感激校园所拥有的一切. 现在, 我更了解我们提供的一切, and it's starting to feel more like a home than it did the first couple of years.
白兰地酒: What’s one piece of advice you have for students looking to get involved?
里斯: 与人交谈. If you know people who are involved in clubs, don't be afraid to talk to them. I always tell the first-year students, “I'm just another student at 白兰地酒. 我知道我是助教，但我只是个三年级的学生. 我只比你大两岁. Don’t be scared to talk to me because I would be more than happy to help.“不要害怕和别人交谈，不要害怕问问题. Don’t ignore all the bulletins with the events going on around campus because they get sent out for a reason. They're out there for you so that you do know and you're aware.
白兰地酒: What’s the best memory you made at 白兰地酒 and why?
里斯: Winning nationals was just the best feeling I've ever had because it was such a relief knowing we made it that far. 我们打了一仗才到那里. Sharing the experience with the people I’ve built connections with at 白兰地酒, and sharing such a special moment in not only our lives but in 白兰地酒's history was incredible. 那可能是我最喜欢的.
白兰地酒: What has been the most valuable lesson you’ve learned at 白兰地酒?
里斯: I learned to take advantage of networking on such a small campus. Part of the reason why I came here is because I knew that I would have the opportunity to get one-on-one help or be involved on campus. 当你去一所更大的学校时，就更难了. 因为我们是一个小校园, 我利用了这一点, 我在校园里也有自己的一席之地.
