President of Pi Sigma Alpha
For most college students, the highlight of the summer is a big trip, the nice weather, or even just the chance to sleep in now and then. But for CU senior Molly Boyle, something life-changing took center stage in the summer of 2016.
鈥淢y husband and I got married in June of this year,鈥� said the political science major. 鈥淲e eloped, but we鈥檙e having a wedding ceremony on our anniversary.鈥�
It was actually her husband鈥檚 job that brought them to Colorado in the first place. Boyle previously attended both the School of Visual Arts and Rutgers University, later transferring to Boulder in 2014. She proceeded to join Pi Sigma Alpha, the university鈥檚 chapter of the National Political Honor Society, and has since become a co-president of the society.
鈥淭o me, it was important to be president so I could get the ball rolling on creating a bridge between political science students and the department,鈥� she said. 鈥淢y role is building a sense of community within political science here at CU.鈥�
Members of Pi Sigma Alpha are in the top third of their class and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in their political science classes. They also engage in the society鈥檚 community service activities and biweekly meetings.
鈥淲hen we have our meetings, a lot of the time we鈥檙e not even really working on an event,鈥� said Boyle. 鈥淲e鈥檙e just sitting together chatting about stuff that鈥檚 going on that we don鈥檛 get time to talk about in class.鈥�
Presiding over Pi Sigma Alpha has been a meaningful opportunity for Boyle to make new friends and develop leadership skills 鈥� skills that she鈥檚 used to advocate for 鈥榓 particularly important cause鈥� to her.
鈥淚'm a huge advocate for suicide prevention,鈥� said Boyle. 鈥淛ust the words 鈥榮uicide鈥� and 鈥榙epression鈥� carry massive social stigma, which is why people in crisis are reluctant to reach out for help.鈥� For this reason, she has and will continue to do everything she can in support of this cause.
鈥淚've rallied for suicide prevention awareness by participating in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's 鈥極ut of the Darkness鈥� community walks, by raising money for suicide prevention, and,鈥� she said, 鈥渂y using my voice as a mechanism for change.鈥�