Mattie Harris stands in front of the U.S. Capitol Building in spring 2023 after discussing the dangers of flavored vape pens with members of Congress. Courtesy photo.
Boston College student Mattie Harris visited the White House last week as a member of , a nonprofit that helps young people fight for reproductive health.
As part of a weeklong conference, Harris and more than a dozen of her peers met with , who directs the Office of National AIDS Policy.聽
Harris says she told Phillips about the plight of Black women living with HIV in her home state of Louisiana, which .
鈥淲e talked a little bit about what we do and encouraged the White House to continue to support our respective communities,鈥� says Harris, a second-year student in the master鈥檚 program at the School of Social Work.
The meeting marked the latest step on her journey to reaching her long-term career goal: harnessing the power of advocacy to improve the well-being of Black, Latinx, and LGBTQ populations. In particular, she envisions herself working as a consultant for organizations focused on making the world a more just and inclusive place for historically marginalized groups.聽
鈥淭he consulting route is something I鈥檓 looking forward to exploring more,鈥� says Harris, a聽macro student聽who studies in the聽Afrocentric Social Work field of practice, 鈥渨hether that鈥檚 helping an organization develop a community health needs assessment or reconfigure their staffing plans.鈥�
Harris credits 亚色影库 with giving her the skills to achieve her career dreams.聽
She says her professional ambitions came into focus during her first few months on the Heights, when she began fieldwork with 亚色影库 BIGS, a program in which students mentor young people.
Harris directed biweekly group activities for 40 youth in Boston鈥檚 Dorchester neighborhood, focusing on improving their skills in science, technology, engineering, and math.
One day, she had an epiphany about her career, a realization that has come to shape her path to becoming a staunch advocate for social justice.聽
鈥淚 realized that I would feel the most impactful and have the most success if I advocated for policies that would help students like the ones I was working with,鈥� says Harris. 鈥淚f I worked with organizations who worked with young people to make sure that we鈥檙e providing the most magical experience that we can.鈥�