Senior Gregory Baldwin is a finalist for the Pepper Prize, which is awarded annually to the senior “who most nearly represents the Lafayette ideal” according to Lafayette College.

You can read Greg’s impressive candidate profile at this link, which includes a description of Gregory’s academic achievements, career goals (medical field), community service, and of course Delta Kappa Epsilon.

Greg’s 300 word statement closes with:

The Lafayette ideal is not someone who simply aces all his tests, but someone who is able to effectively engage with his peers and greater community in order to affect change and better both his and their lives, and I believe my Lafayette experience has allowed me to do just that.

Good luck Brother Baldwin! Full profile preserved from Lafayette’s website after the jump…

2012-Gregory Baldwin

First Major:       English
Minor:              Mathematics          

 

300 Word Statement

Lafayette encourages students to pursue a well-rounded education, and our motto, Cur non or “Why not?”, challenges us to step outside our comfort zones and immerse ourselves in diverse activities that force us to question the world, but more importantly, ourselves.  As such, the Lafayette ideal is a student who excels both inside and outside the classroom by taking this statement to heart and actively seeking to better himself through education and character development.

As an English Major, Mathematics Minor and Pre-Med student, I have taken full advantage of the academic opportunities offered by pursuing courses in a variety of different departments.  Although my academic experience is somewhat atypical, I feel it has afforded me a stronger grasp on the functioning of the world and a greater appreciation for the interactions of its inhabitants.  However, I have not confined myself exclusively to academic pursuits, but as a very social creature have participated and taken leadership roles in a variety of co-curricular and social activities.  Serving as a Lafayette Ambassador and College Outreach Representative I had the opportunity to share my passion for Lafayette with both prospective students and alumni, and as a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity I have been able to interact with students from all grades and walks of life.   Further, through my committed service with the Landis Center as Coordinator of the KIC Program, I have grown as both a leader and active citizen— exactly what a proper college education should accomplish.

The Lafayette ideal is not someone who simply aces all his tests, but someone who is able to effectively engage with his peers and greater community in order to affect change and better both his and their lives, and I believe my Lafayette experience has allowed me to do just that.

 

Academic Activities

  • Dean’s List    4
    Each semester of my college career up to the present, I have been awarded recognition on the Dean’s List for maintaining a term average of at least 3.60.
  • Phi Beta Kappa    2
    The spring of my junior year, I was initiated into the Lafayette Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.  Selection into the Lafayette chapter is based upon meeting the requirements of degree programs, demonstration of breadth in course work and a commitment to liberal learning. More specifically, the chapter takes into account grade point average, advanced-level courses outside the student’s major, and the study of mathematics and foreign language.
  • Order of Omega    1
    The spring of my senior year, I was initiated into the Lafayette Chapter of the Order of Omega, the national Greek honor society.  In order to be considered for membership, students must have a GPA in the top 5% of all Greek life students at their school.  Further, students must have shown a variety of involvement in both the Greek and college community.
  • Study Abroad   1
    The fall of my junior year, I studied abroad at the University of Glasgow in Glasgow, Scotland.  During my time there I furthered my English education with an advanced course in Scottish Literature, but also took a course entitled Functional Pre-Med Anatomy, an introductory, lab-based anatomy course designed for US Pre-Med students that focused on clinical applications of anatomy. The course provided me with opportunities to study plasticized cadaver specimens as well as perform my own dissections of cadavers. Through this, I gained insight and developed an even greater appreciation for the intricate organization of bodily systems, fully confirming my decision to become a doctor.  I was also able to participate in a number of cultural experiences, traveling to Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Holland and Germany.
  • Health Professions Club    4
    Since my freshman year I have been a member of the Lafayette Health Professions Club.  Although I am an English major, I have always intended on going to medical school after college, and the Health Professions Club allowed me to stay up to date in American medical culture through a variety of lectures sponsored by the club and  also allowed me to immerse myself in the medical culture by providing volunteer opportunities at Easton Hospital.
  • Medical Research at Duke University Medical Center    2
    The summers between my sophomore and junior year and junior and senior year were spent in North Carolina working in a lab and in a hospital on urology research.  The first summer I designed and ran performance diagnostic tests on newly developed hand-held lithotriptors (surgical devices used to fragment kidney stones), assisted in the creation of a research database for upper urinary tract epithelial carcinoma treatment and performed comparative analysis on kidney tissue damage after shock-wave lithotripsy.  My second summer I continued work on the litotriptor research, collecting data to be used in patenting of the device, as well as creating a research database for high grade prostate cancer treatment options and survival rates.  All of this work resulted in 3 publications of which I am a co-author and which were presented this past winter at the World Congress of Endourology.
  • Kaplan MCAT Instructor    1
    After scoring above the 90th percentile on my administration of the MCAT, I was offered a position as a Kaplan MCAT instructor.  After making it through the vigorous selection and training process, I taught an MCAT Prep course here at Lafayette for approximately 20 Lafayette students and a number of other students from neighboring schools.  Aside from teaching a course, I am a personal MCAT tutor and test proctorer, and also work as a marketer for Kaplan events and courses.
  • Marquis Scholar    4
    When I was accepted to Lafayette I was awarded a Marquis Scholarship.  As a Marquis Scholar I have had a variety of opportunities to participate in extracurricular, cultural, and supplementary academic events offered only to Marquis Scholars.  My scholarship has afforded me the opportunity to expand my education outside the classroom and has given me a much fuller and well rounded education.

 

Campus Activities

  • CORe: College Outreach Representative    3
    My sophomore year I was selected among 15 other students on the campus to be a member in the inaugural year of the College Outreach Program.  As a student representative, it is my duty to reach out to alumni in the area and help reestablish or continue to foster positive college-alumni relations.  This is accomplished through one on one meetings in the workplace to discuss their Lafayette experience and potentially provide avenues for them to get more involved as an alumnus.  Further, since the program is partnered with the Lafayette Development office, as a CORe Student I have also had the opportunity to attend a variety of alumni events here on campus. Working in this program has helped to improve my communication and networking skills, while simultaneously providing me a unique opportunity to speak with alumni I never would have had the chance to otherwise.
  • Lafayette Ambassador    2
    Freshman and sophomore year I served as a Lafayette Ambassador, more commonly known as a campus Tour Guide.  As such, it was my duty to lead a group of prospective students around campus and answer any student life questions they may have a minimum of once a week.  Further, I helped run special event days such as Experience Lafayette Day, Junior Visit Day, and Marquis Scholar days.  I have always enjoyed my time at Lafayette and am very pleased with my experience and greatly enjoyed imparting my wisdom and enthusiasm to potential future students.  Unfortunately upon my return from studying abroad I was forced to stop giving tours simply due to time commitments made elsewhere.
  • FCC
    My freshman year I was elected by my class to serve on the Freshman Class Council.  Our job was to plan and run class specific events to help create a sense of class unity.  Aside from a few sponsored events at the Spot, we ended the year with a large barbecue on the quad exclusively for our class.

 

Community Service

  • POSP    3
    Before Orientation freshman year I volunteered as a KIC Camp Counselor as part of POSP and was in charge of approximately 10 children for three days.  I enjoyed my experience as a freshman so much that as an upperclassman I also volunteered as a POSP staff member, coordinating the arts and crafts station my sophomore year and outdoor games my senior year.  Also in my senior year I was selected as a reflection facilitator, and led group discussions about our service work and its impact on both the community and ourselves.  I had the opportunity to serve in a leadership position on the POSP executive board but chose not to pursue it because in that position I would not be participating in as much direct service, which for me is the most important and rewarding.  Unfortunately I was unable to participate in POSP my junior year because I was studying abroad.
  • Kids in the Community Program Coordinator    4
    Coming out of my experiences with POSP, I volunteered for the KIC program my freshman year.  KIC or Kids in the Community is a student run after school program for underprivileged children in the Easton community that provides homework help and mentoring within a safe structured environment.  The program’s goal is to keep kids off the streets and out of gangs by providing a creative outlet for them after school.  During my freshman year I was nominated by the then Program Coordinators to apply for the position of Program Coordinator and I was given the position the fall of my sophomore year and have served as program coordinator ever since.  My duties as such are to come up with our weekly activities at the program, ranging from simple arts and crafts to science experiments to visits from cultural or educational groups on campus, to purchase snack for the kids, and lead my volunteers at the site.  I have devoted approximately 7-10 hours a week serving as KIC Program Coordinator since sophomore year, 5 hours of that time spent at the sites (2.5 hrs twice a week) and the remainder of that time planning and organizing activities and events, as well as attending Landis Staff meetings and other events such as leadership skills seminars.  Landis does not only emphasize direct service, but also reflection and education, so a significant portion of my time is also spent designing reflection and education events that are relevant to my program and highlight the social issues that KIC is trying to combat.
  • Landis One Time Service Opportunities    4
    Aside from ongoing service programs, Landis provides a number of one time service opportunities, among which are Make a Difference Day, Lafapalooza and Literacy Day.  Because of my deep involvement with the Landis Center, I have both volunteered at these events during my four years, as well as helped plan and run these events as a Landis Staff member (Sophomore year- Literacy Day, Junior year-Lafapalooza, Senior year- Make a Difference Day).
  • Delta Kappa Epsilon Director of Service and Philanthropy    1
    Because of my passion for service and connections with the Landis Center, after I was initiated into the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity, I was elected to the position of Director of Service and Philanthropy.  During my tenure, I initiated a now annual Pictures with Santa philanthropy event with the Alpha Phi sorority.  I also organized and ran a soccer tournament with ISA to raise money for Haiti earthquake relief.  Lastly, I lead my chapter in our largest philanthropy event of the year, the Jeremy Saxe Memorial Basketball Tournament.  This tournament is in honor of a DKE brother who tragically passed away in his sleep from an undiagnosed heart condition.  All the money raised from the tournament goes to the Jeremy Saxe Memorial Foundation, a foundation created in his honor that raises money for schools in Nepal.  As DSP, I helped to raise the most money in the tournament’s history.  Through my and my chapter’s continued efforts, we have raised enough money to help build a school in the village where Jeremy spent his semester abroad and ground was recently broken on the construction site.
  • Easton Hospital Volunteer    2
    My freshman and sophomore year, as a member of the Health Professions Club, I volunteered at the Easton Hospital once a week for 3 hours.  I spent my time in the orthopedic surgery ward because of my interest in the specialty, and I helped tend to the post-op patients, as well as got to assist the physical therapists during therapy sessions.  This was a very rewarding experience that gave me hands on contact and interaction with patients and only further served to solidify my interests in medicine.
  • ASB Team Haiti    1
    My senior year I became a member of the Alternative School Break club and was selected to go on a service trip to Haiti.  Unfortunately, two weeks before I was supposed to leave, I suffered an accident skiing which required surgery and thus prevented me from going on the trip.  Although this was very upsetting and a serious blow, I have remained involved in the club and have continued to help with the Teams fundraising projects and educational events back on campus.

 

Athletics

 

Special Interest

 

  • Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity    3
    My sophomore year I pledged as a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity, and have remained an active member ever since.  Within the house I have served as both the Director of Service and Philanthropy and as Public Relations Chairman.  I have worked hard to try and better the image of my chapter and Greek life in general, and for two years in a row, our fraternity has won the award for Most Improved Chapter and last year won the Hoff Award for Most Outstanding Living Group.
  • Inter-Fraternity Council    2
    My junior year I served as a chapter delegate to the Inter-Fraternity Council, and my senior year I served on the Executive Board as Director of Recruitment.  As such, I spearheaded a number of initiatives in response to the Board of Trustees stipulated requirements that were released last fall.  Among these was the creation of a fraternity open house for all freshman to come and visit each chapter and meet some of the brothers in an effort to create a more open rush process.  Further, I also championed an increase in the GPA requirement for membership and helped to create the new IFC Tutoring program partnered with ATTIC to help fraternity men improve their grades.
  • STAND    1
    The fall of my freshman year I was a member of STAND: Students Taking Action Now Darfur, a student run anti-genocide activism group.  In the spring I then was elected as Vice-President and helped organize and sponsor a number of events to help raise awareness about the atrocities in the Sudan.  I and a few other members of the club also went on a National Leadership Retreat as part of the organization and learned valuable leadership and organizational skills.  Unfortunately, when we sought to become an independent organization, we were denied by student government and became simply an interest group under Amnesty International and many of our efforts subsequently lost steam.

Lafayette Chamber Singers    1
My freshman year I was a member of the Lafayette Chamber Singers, an elite choral group of 16 students.  As a member I performed at a number of school events, foremost among singing the national anthem at the Lafayette-Lehigh game, as well as a number of shows off campus.  In the spring we had the honor to join a large choral ensemble to perform War Requiem at Carnegie Hall, which was an experience I will never forget.  That spring we also put on a Medieval Dinner Theater and I performed the lead role of the Jester in ‘The Jester’s Test’.  I would have loved to continue to be a member of the Chamber Singers, but my position as KIC Coordinator made me unavailable for the rehearsal time and I had to give it up my sophomore year.

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