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Caty Carpenter, A Scholar Who Does it All
by Deidre Abouahmed
Caty Carpenter
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What with volunteer service, clogging practice, sorority meetings, schoolwork, and a social life -- Caty Carpenter has always lived a very busy schedule.
Graduating summa cum laude with a cumulative grade point average of 3.94 and a double major in psychology and sociology, Carpenter was one of two student speakers for the class of 2006 at commencement ceremonies on May 6.
She has some tips for people who wonder how she seems to do it all.
"I think a lot for me is setting up a schedule and maintaining it ---and making time for schoolwork as well as a social life."
As a Bonner Scholar she was required to give 140 service hours a semester, along with 280 additional hours each summer for two summers. She worked at a nonprofit family visitation center that provides a safe, neutral environment for parents and children. She also worked at A HOPE (a homeless daycare center).
It was because of Bonner that Carpenter discovered that she wanted to change her major to sociology and psychology to understand more about why people change and how it affects themselves and others.
"Without my Bonner experiences, I don't think I could have done what I've done," she said.
In her sophomore year at Mars Hill College, Carpenter joined Bailey Mountain Cloggers, which has meant attending frequent practices and rehearsals and traveling to competitions. She also joined the national sorority Delta Zeta. She was treasurer and secretary in 2004 and president in 2005. This year the national sorority named her outstanding senior from the region.
Carpenter was treasurer of Inter Greek Council and was selected to Alpha Chi, a National Honors Society.
Participating in many extracurricular activities along with a demanding academic schedule, Carpenter has managed to excel in and out of the classroom with the help of her planner. "I always use my planner."
Every week Carpenter knows she has much to do to accomplish her goals. She sets up a weekly schedule and plans her days by the hour. She puts down all her class times and scheduled meetings first, then begins to fill in the blanks. She pencils in the rest of her schedule of daily goals.
She knocks out what she has to get done in major chunks instead of doing a little at a time. For example, Carpenter is a Bonner scholar and has left her Mondays open to complete her volunteer hours for the week.
After graduation, Carpenter plans to go to Mississippi for a week and help with future freshmen Bonner Scholars. Then she'll go to Guatemala for 10 days as part of the Hester Center Internship Award along with Brian Danforth, Missy Harris, Bethany Brooks, Mary Margaret Fulk, Christa Gaffer, Tavarus Hill and Tamara Washington. There they will be helping with hurricane relief.
When arriving home Carpenter will not have much time to rest because she will be moving to Burkesville, Kentucky for the next two months where she will be program director at Camp Paradise Valley for the Salvation Army.
Ending a busy summer, Carpenter will work at receiving her Master's at UNC Charlotte or deferring her acceptance for a year and working at Mars Hill Life Works as a volunteer coordinator and working with scholars.
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