Fellow:Donovan Kay

Donovan Kay

Hello! My name is Donovan. I'm currently in my senior year at Boise State University, pursuing a Bachelor's in Psychology. The majority of the philosophies I have about life have come from my time at summer camp. This camp is one I started attending when I was around twelve years old. I found, at this camp, a place where I was completely accepted for exactly who I am; a funny, weird, smart, atypical person. Camp was the place I went every year to forget about not fitting in and not feeling like myself. It was a place in which I could always place the highest hope.When I was old enough and mature enough, I went back to camp and worked as a counselor, and was able to start facilitating that same feeling of inclusivity, hope, and absolute wackiness. The following summer, I came back and lead one of the leadership programs, specifically teaching the fourteen- and fifteen-year-old campers about what it means to be a leader. This was the first time I had realized that I was truly shaping the future of the place I always had (and likely always will) considered my second home. This past summer, the summer of 2016, I returned to camp once more and oversaw all of the leadership programs, and realized I was in exactly the place I had always wanted to be. I was now giving to the next camp generation what camp had given to me; the ability to understand collaborative leadership, recognize the individuality of every person, and to approach every human interaction as a chance to better the world one baby step at a time.

The things on which I am currently working (a completely non-exhaustive list) are:

• Promoting the use of emerging technology in creative ways
• Leveraging makerspaces as collaborative, inclusive, communities
• Increasing recognition of mental illness and the stigmas attached to it
• Investigating the links between masculine gender norms and suicide

Related Links

Boise State University

Boise State University Student Priorities

University Innovation Fellows

Spring 2016:

Ann Delaney

Kelly Schutt

Rebecka Seward

Fall 2016:

Alexander Schloss

Sienna George