Join us as we catch up with Steven A. Davis Scholarship recipients post-graduation to hear what they’ve been up to, what’s next and how the scholarship has impacted their education and career journey.
Meet Piper: A dedicated member of the greater St. Louis area community, fierce advocate for victims of domestic violence and 2022 AEO Steven A. Davis Scholarship for Social Justice recipient. After completing her undergraduate program this past spring, Piper is slated to graduate with a Master’s in Public Administration in May 2025 and plans to pursue a career in nonprofit development.
The beginning of Piper’s college experience was similar to many teens and young adults across the country as COVID made waves – it included a pandemic-prompted change of plans. After she initially enrolled at Missouri State University for her undergrad, Piper ultimately transferred to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. As an only child close with her family, choosing to move home was a difficult but seemingly necessary decision.
“It was a really tough time,” Piper said of the decision. “Even though I was transferring and continuing my education, to me, I felt like I dropped out. I kind of felt like a failure… felt like I’d left and now had to come back and move back home– but it ended up being a great choice. I was exactly where I needed to be.”
Piper found herself settling into the part-new, part-familiar environment early on thanks to a few great professors, new connections– and her new job as a Brand Ambassador at Aerie following a chance encounter with friends from high school working there at the time.
“Being able to help people find cute outfits, give them a confidence boost—finding something I’m good at and feeling like I had the power to make someone’s day—really helped me through that transition which would have been tough otherwise,” Piper noted of the time.
Honing Into Her Passion
“I always knew I wanted to do Political Science– it was just what I wanted to do with [my degree].”
In high school, Piper was able to combine her passion for electoral politics with social justice work. Getting more involved with local advocacy groups, including organizing a chapter of Students Demand Action in her community, sparked a growing interest in public administration.
“I saw that there were other ways to make a difference, which got me into nonprofit work. I discovered that’s a way that I can make a difference that’s probably even more effective than going through electoral channels.”
Heading into 2022, with a renewed confidence in herself and growing interest in public administration, she applied for AEO’s Steven A. Davis Scholarship for Social Justice. Just a few months later, Piper learned she was selected as one of the associate recipients. With the additional financial support from the scholarship, she was able to pursue her passion for nonprofit community with AmeriCorps’ VISTA program.
“My time at Aerie and winning the scholarship empowered me to feel like it was time to do AmeriCorps. The scholarship helped alleviate financial worries so I was able to fully pursue that.
I was able to gain the confidence through my time at Aerie that allowed me to jump in feet first [to AmeriCorps]. I’ve loved it and have been there ever since.”
Love of Community
Through VISTA, Piper works with St. Louis-based domestic violence support service provider ALIVE where she helps with development and outreach efforts, event planning, grant writing and social media. The organization offers support for individuals in-need throughout any step of the journey of leaving an abusive partner and fills service gaps within the community.
Working for ALIVE has allowed Piper to be more connected and plugged into the St. Louis community– something important to her since childhood.
“As an only child, I was always searching for community as a kid,” she shared. “I was always looking for things to be a part of, so community has always been really important to me.
Doing nonprofit work in a certain area really ties you to that community. Now that I’ve done nonprofit work for the greater St. Louis community– this has been home forever, but now it’s home. This is my community and I’ve invested a lot into it.”
Looking Ahead
Asked what advice she would give a high school senior or freshman in college looking to get involved or give back based on her experience, Piper suggests staying local to see tangible results in your community.
“It’s so easy to get overwhelmed by everything that the world needs that you want to tackle something big. But I’ve found with my work in the community, whenever you can stay local, that’s when you can make the most impact, at least for me personally that’s where I’ve been able to affect the most change.
It’s overwhelming to think about the whole country or the whole world– but just look at your community and say, ‘what do these people need’ and ‘what can I provide?’ You don’t need to do it all! Pick a need and pick a population and make that need for that population.”
Overall, Piper feels hopeful about what the future holds and excited about the change she’s seeing in the social justice landscape, due in part to the growing understanding and embracing of intersectionality and its ability to unite advocates toward the shared causes benefiting the greater group.
“One of my favorite quotes is ‘a rising tide lifts all ships,’ and I believe that– a win for one sector of the social justice community is a win for all of us, and we can all take that momentum.”
Since 2021, AEO has awarded more than $1 million in scholarships to 59 associates through the AEO Steven A. Davis Scholarship for Social Justice.