Through RCAH assistant professor Donna Kaplowitz’s civic engagement course in the spring of 2010, Orsini worked with 6th graders at Whitehills Elementary School, 621 Pebblebrook Lane, introducing them to various leadership qualities.“She’s the epitome of a success story in terms of (the RCAH’s) mission to teach civic engagement to our students,” Kaplowitz said.

“She lives it; she embodies what we hope our students will learn about making an impact on a community beyond their immediate MSU surroundings.”

After working with the students through team-building activities, Orsini enrolled in an independent study under Kaplowitz in the fall of 2010, where she followed some of her students to MacDonald Middle School, 1601 Burcham Drive, and started a leadership club.

The MacDonald Middle School Leadership Club is an after-school club where the students and Orsini meet and discuss collaboration, respect and communication with others. She helped the students design a kindness campaign for their school community as a positive way to combat bullying and improve the school’s atmosphere.

“Instead of doing a negative campaign like anti-bullying, they wanted to do something coming from a positive angle,” Orsini said.

“So they decided on encouraging kindness and doing a kindness campaign.”

When Orsini’s independent study concluded at the end of the fall semester, she volunteered to work with the students for the rest of their school year and encouraged the students to find a project to benefit an even larger community.

They decided to work with Haven House, 121 Whitehills Drive, the only family-oriented homeless shelter in the area. Through a penny jar contest Orsini and the leadership club organized, Kaplowitz said the middle school raised $1,000 for the shelter.

RCAH junior Hanna Obbink assisted Orsini with the club in the spring, and after seeing how involved they were with the students, she said Orsini deserves the recognition.

“Everyone was genuinely so excited to come and learn and engage,” Obbink said. “She has an incredible personality, which touches the kids, and that was really cool to witness.”

In addition to fundraising, they painted a mural on a wall at Haven House, adding color to the bare, white walls.

“They developed their own mural that all of the kids worked on (together),” Kaplowitz said. “They went back (to Haven House) on a Saturday and spent the day painting this amazing mural on the wall.”

Kaplowitz said Orsini’s work with the students is amazing. After learning about leadership, Orsini said she could see the students putting their acquired skills to use with their community projects.

“It’s not like I’ve been doing the leadership club and all my civic engagement for recognition,” Orsini said. “I’d be doing it if no one noticed, but it really is awesome to have people see what I’m doing and think it’s a great thing.”