From the president
Andy Cao, a member of the 2025 class at Middlebury College, is dedicated to working with community partners to tackle some of society's most complex challenges. In his first year, Andy joined the Privilege & Poverty academic cluster, which integrates coursework with experiential learning to examine economic inequality's causes and consequences critically. That summer, Andy worked with Charter House Coalition, our community’s low-barrier emergency shelter. Andy spent the summer working to support and build relationships with community members who could not access local housing. Continuing his connections with Charter House beyond his summer placement, Andy grew into a leadership role in a student organization that supports Charter House through meal preparation, student-guest connections, and other programming. Last year, Andy served in two summer internships in the Boston area - one with TransitMatters, examining equity, access, and reliability issues in public transit, and one with the Forest Foundation, providing grant acquisition support for a non-profit focused on educating incarcerated persons. Throughout his time at Middlebury Andy has continued to blend his academic study - focusing on environmental policy and sociology - with community work to address vexing challenges in our communities.
Personal Statement
My appreciation for and involvement in community engagement has grown throughout my college experience. Through the Privilege and Poverty Academic Cohort at Middlebury College, I have connected class concepts around economic inequality with experiential learning opportunities. Two summers ago, I worked for the Charter House Coalition, a low-barrier shelter in Middlebury, VT. This experience helped me understand the importance of direct service work and the role of local stakeholders, and I am grateful to continue volunteering at CHC for weekly dinners. I also had the opportunity to work as an intern with the Privilege and Poverty program to share my experience and encourage active learning surrounding economic inequality. Throughout my other experiences, I have explored the role of community in addressing environmental inequality, such as through my internship last summer at a Boston nonprofit focused on public transportation called TransitMatters. In my future endeavors, I will continue to center community when tackling both the symptoms and causes of social, economic, and environmental inequality.