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When Shelby Kosiver '23, '24 M.S. looks back on her time as a Â鶹AV, she appreciates how much she has grown as an individual as well as the "amazing" memories she's created. She's made great friends, traveled, and developed resilience.

A criminal justice major, Kosiver will accept her degree during the University's Spring Commencement in May. She credits her professors' support, professionalism, and engagement as having been particularly impactful during her educational journey, and she says they've helped her get to where she is today.

"Through my education, along with the knowledge and experience of my professors, I have sharpened my interest regarding what I would like to do in the future," she said. "Furthermore, coming from a town with very little diversity, I found that my experiences at the University helped prepare me to have insightful communications and relationships with many different individuals."

Although the pandemic disrupted much of her first two years at the University, Kosiver remained resilient. She says her experience during the pandemic helped her to fully appreciate the time she had with her friends and suitemates. A member of the University's Alpha Lambda Delta and Alpha Phi Sigma chapters, she has many fond memories of her time with her fellow Â鶹AVs, enjoying fun events such as a painting night and a Jeopardy! game night.

While the pandemic also disrupted her plans to study abroad, Kosiver says that enabled her to appreciate the importance of traveling when she has the chance. After it was deemed safe to do so, she visited several places such as Idaho, Nevada, and Canada.

Kosiver's internship also brought her to Block Island, off the coast of Rhode Island. She says working with the New Shoreham Police Department was an "unforgettable opportunity."

"Through this experience, I learned how successful community policing is accomplished," she said. "This work taught me how to not only maintain community relations, but to also bring community concerns to my supervisor. I gained experience monitoring large crowds, since during the peak of summer, it was common for more than 1,000 people to disembark the ferry to the island. Moreover, this internship taught me that successful communication is vital in this field."

A member of the University's Honors program, Kosiver tied her thesis research into her minor in Arabic. As part of her thesis, titled "How Syrian Women Refugees and Community Leaders Tackle Integration," she interviewed Syrian women and community leaders to learn how community integration might be improved. Drawing on her coursework, she applied what she's learned about the Arab Spring and how oppression has impacted the lives of Syrians.

As part of a dual-degree program at the University, Kosiver will return to the University this fall to begin her graduate degree in national security. She says being a part of the dual-degree program has already created meaningful opportunities for her to deepen her understanding of criminal justice and national security.

"As a part of the national security graduate program, I have an opportunity to complete an internship in the federal government," she explains. "This experience helped to shape my interests regarding criminal justice. Furthermore, I learned about the operations of the federal government and how it is greatly differently from a local police department."