Donzell Lampkins joined the SSO on December 18, and now wants to help students find themselves in a school that heavily emphasizes academic achievement. “I hope to help students recognize the greatness inside of them,” says Lampkins.

Lampkins received a BA in Communication Sciences from Eastern Illinois University and a Master of Social Work from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Before joining the SSO, he worked as a Behavioral Health Clinician at an outpatient health clinic.

Certain aspects of Uni have surprised Lampkins, who came to Uni expecting students to “have it all together”.

He says, “On the outside it does appear that way, but as you engage with students and learn more about them, there is definitely some underlying social and emotional concerns”.

It’s these problems that Lampkins wants to fix. Although he hasn’t been here long, he has recognized that Uni students feel pressured to “live a life that is scripted for someone else”. He says he wants to “help them feel comfortable being their full authentic selves and be proud of their particular journey”.

Lampkins also hopes to change Uni’s climate to “an atmosphere where it’s okay to be different, it’s okay to step outside of the norms”.