With your help, we exceeded our $10,000 goal by over $6,000! Thank you to everyone who supported our campaign.

Thank you to everyone who has helped us reach 40% of our $10,000 goal! With eight hours left in our campaign, spread the word on the various ways that you can still give:

This year, WITH US became apart of 120 AmeriCorps Volunteer Infrastructure Partner Sites across California. This statewide project connects skilled full time volunteers with local organizations to sustain volunteers and vital programs for communities. The state helps support new Fellows and funding support from WITH US donors helps us cover the other half of the expenses to operate as an AmeriCorps VIP site. Our AmeriCorps VIP Fellow this year is Shafali Raj, who was recently recognized as one of the Outstanding Student Employees of the Year at Cal Poly for her above and beyond contributions as a student employee. She was one of the first volunteers to join WITH US’ bystander research initiatives, and has been promoted over time to a student employee, and now as our first AmeriCorps Fellow, she has laid the groundwork for us to rapidly expand our student internship program to create more Learn By Doing opportunities.

Read about how her AmeriCorps position at WITH US has impacted her time as a Cal Poly student below:

“When I began working at WITH US as a research assistant I never thought I would take on a full time role by the end of the year. This position at WITH US has given me so much opportunity. 8 months ago I got to have a first hand role in creating a new research based bystander intervention training program. 4 months ago I was able to share this program with members of the Cal Poly community as a facilitator. And today as an AmeriCorps VIP Fellow, I have the opportunity to recruit, manage, and lead our student interns in the important work WITH US does daily. The AmeriCorps program and WITH US has propelled me from just being a student with a textbook education, to being an experienced professional ready for the workforce. It has pushed me to build my professional and technical skills while also working for causes important to me that affects thousands of Americans daily, and especially my fellow college students. I am EXTREMELY excited for the future of our student internships and partnership as an AmeriCorps site.”

Today, we are excited to highlight our Graduate Assistant Maria, who serves as an Outreach Coordinator for WITH US.  She is currently in the Higher Education Student Affairs Masters Program at Cal Poly and has been such an important part of coordinating the California Bystander Benchmark Survey as part of WITH US’ National College Student Bystander Study.  Maria’s graduate studies are immediately put into practice through her role on the WITH US team. Donating to support our internship and student staff programs make it possible for students like Maria to gain real life experience in the professional field she is hoping to join after graduation. Read what she shared with us below:

Maria shared: “Working for WITH US as a graduate student within higher education student affairs has allowed me to fully utilize my skills while collaborating with other brilliant people on meaningful projects. I’ve built my experience in research, peer-to-peer education and promoting awareness in areas of campus health and well-being that are truly relevant and important to current and future generations of college students. I’m excited that I get to continue to work for WITH US to help support myself through school while gaining invaluable experience in research and practice.”

How does AAA impact lives? Check out testimony from alumni on their undergraduate experience as AAA and WITH US interns.

• Ashley: “As a resident advisor, I witnessed firsthand how AAA positively impacted students at Cal Poly’s campus. I saw students looking out for one another and stepping up to call for help. The influence of AAA is unmistakable. Students would reference AAA signs or learning material covered during orientation. This is such an amazing program, and I am so happy it has a place at Cal Poly and campuses across the nation. I hope it continues to grow so it can encourage awareness, safe drinking, and bystander intervention. AAA saves lives!”

Ashley Lekkerkerk, Communication Studies Class of 2018

AAA Marketing and Communications Assistant

• Erin: “My internship at WITH US provided me with a unique opportunity to work on projects that helped define my personal and professional values while participating in something much larger than myself. I learned so much about public health and research, as well as my own area of expertise which is marketing, with the support of a wonderful and empowering team. Words cannot describe how grateful I am to have gained the experience that I did, and how happy I am to carry the knowledge, achievements, and skills with me as I embark on other endeavors. WITH US is bettering the lives of students, parents, and families everywhere - it is an honor to have played a part in that.”

Erin LaMontagne, Business Administration/Marketing Class of 2019

WITH US Marketing Coordinator

• Megan: “Interning for this organization allowed me to gain confidence in my skills as a designer, work with a team of talented and passionate individuals, and most importantly inspired me to be a better person. It was extremely gratifying knowing that the work I was putting in was potentially saving a student’s life. I am grateful to have spent my last quarter of undergrad working on such a meaningful and important cause to Cal Poly I highly encourage anyone to give back to AAA/WU whether it’s through volunteering, interning, or a small financial donation.”

Megan Le, Graphic Communication Class of 2018

AAA Marketing and Communications Assistan

When Scott and Julia Starkey donated Aware Awake Alive to Cal Poly, it was our top priority to get student involved and provide Learn By Doing internships.

Lizzie and Emilie were the VERY FIRST to join our student team! Now in their last quarter at Cal Poly, we can’t imagine what things would have been like without them. These two played critical roles in ensuring the Aware Awake Alive mission continued to thrive as WITH US was being established. Their experience as Peer Educators with Campus Health & Wellbeing, their knowledge of alcohol and other drug misuse issues, and their passion to spread the Aware Awake Alive message and Carson’s story made them such an inspiring duo to have on our team. They have helped create new awareness and education materials, represented our organization at national conferences, hosted exhibits and presentations, cultivated campus relationships with student organizations, faculty and staff, and have played such an important role in planning and hosting the Mustang Mile event the past few years (p.s. This year’s event is happening on May 30th!)

We are so grateful to them for the impact they’ve had on our organization and sharing our mission and message with campuses across the county.  And we are grateful to our donors that made these internships possible.

Help us thank Lizzie and Emilie for their above and beyond contributions to raising awareness and saving lives!