For Delaware State University student Victoria Wicker, giving back to her hometown meant making sure students could begin the school year with more than just the supplies they needed. She wanted them to start with confidence, excitement and the freedom to choose something of their own.
Wicker, a Law Studies major from Irvington, New Jersey, and member of the Class of 2027, recently organized a back-to-school drive in her hometown to provide school supplies to students from kindergarten through college.
The idea was inspired by something Wicker remembered from her own childhood: seeing elementary school students arrive for the new school year without the supplies they needed.
“That experience stayed with me, and I wanted to make sure students in my community had access to the resources they needed to start the school year prepared and confident,” Wicker said.
Wicker organized the drive herself, with two other Delaware State University students volunteering to help. Rather than limiting the event to a particular age group, she opened it to anyone who needed school supplies, recognizing that the financial burden of preparing for a new school year can affect students at every level of their education.
For Wicker, one of the most rewarding moments came as she watched children select their own supplies. Instead of simply receiving a prepackaged set of items, students were able to choose the colors and styles of their notebooks, folders, pencil cases and other materials.
“They could pick the color of their notebooks, folders, pencil cases, and other supplies based on what they liked rather than what their families could afford,” Wicker said. “They weren’t limited by financial circumstances; they had choices just like any other student.”
That sense of choice was important to Wicker. She wanted the students who attended the drive to experience the same excitement of preparing for a new school year as their classmates, regardless of their families’ financial circumstances.
The drive was also a homecoming of sorts for Wicker, giving her an opportunity to serve the Irvington community that helped shape her long before she became a student at Delaware State University.
“I chose to give back to my hometown because my community played an important role in shaping the person I am today,” Wicker said. “Giving back was my way of showing appreciation and making sure that I could positively impact the same community that helped shape me.”
Through the drive, Wicker was able to turn a childhood memory into an opportunity to make the start of a new school year a little brighter for students in the community she still calls home.
