Hello! I'm Dana Lyford, I am the MACC AmeriCorps*VISTA at Framingham State College and this is my first year serving as a VISTA. I was born and raised in Central, Mass. and just recently graduated from Worcester State College where I spent a wonderful four years realizing my passion for higher education and student affairs. While at Worcester State, I earned my degree in English with a concentration in Writing and was very active in the college community.
My plan since my sophomore year was to graduate from WSC and move on to a Master's program in Student Affairs immediately. I even went so far as to apply and get accepted to a Master's program all before I joined the VISTA program. It was a really spontaneous decision I made to sit down at my computer and visit www.americorps.gov one afternoon and ever since then I couldn't stop thinking about joining AmeriCorps. I looked through many programs, and I was very surprised and pleased to come upon the MACC*VISTA program because I never could have imagined being to join my desire to give back to my community with my passion for higher education. I applied for the MACC*VISTA position and after I got accepted it didn't take me long to make the decision to join up with the program and put grad school off for a year.
I didn't fully understand when joining how beneficial this program was going to be for me, both personally and professionally. I came into it kind of blindly, unsure of what to expect but after meeting my fellow VISTAs and hanging out with them for the week of Pre-Service Orientation, I knew I was in the right place. Not only have I come across a giant new group of friends that I know I can count on, but I've come into a network of wonderful professionals who I know I can turn to for support any time I need it. Every day I am thankful for my decision to join as a MACC AmeriCorps*VISTA.
Growing up in Massachusetts, MACC was a perfect fit for me. I have called the Bay State home for 22 years and have absorbed everything it has to offer. I couldn't be more thrilled to be a part of a program who works so hard to strengthen education for the people of Massachusetts.
I look forward to an exciting year, and am happy to be on board to get things done for America!
*VISTA love,
Dana
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