Ask Jamal Dancy '24 about his university experience and he won’t sugarcoat it: College can be hard.
But he feels like Alvernia University is a place where, despite your struggles, you can feel secure in the fact that if you ask for help, you’ll get it.
Dancy transferred to Alvernia in May 2022 after earning an associate degree in criminal justice from Reading Area Community College (RACC). What won him over? The O’Pake Institute for Economic Development & Entrepreneurship.
“I took a tour of O’Pake and saw what the Institute was doing for the community," Dancy said.
A Reading resident, and one who hopes to make change for the better in his hometown, he sees a difference since Alvernia brought the Institute into the city.
“Since O’Pake made its home here, the change has happened quickly," he said. "Five years ago, I wouldn’t necessarily have walked up and down Penn Street.”
As an O’Pake Fellow, he worked in advising nonprofit organizations aiming to get their start at doing good.
“We helped them build business models, to obtain their 501(c)3 status and to fulfill their dreams,” said Dancy proudly.
And in a unique twist, he was able to experience the help the Institute can offer a young entrepreneur as well, getting assistance in developing an app of his own geared to universities as a client.
Hands-on experiences are what set Alvernia University apart, said Dancy. That, and the knowledge of its professors and the willingness of all members of faculty to lend a helping hand.
