Malynn Pavey is best known around campus as a deeply caring and strong-willed student. Throughout the first four weeks of the 2021 fall semester, Malynn has pushed herself to positively contribute to Drake’s on-campus community. This push has allowed her to contribute to several student organizations and make an extremely successful early adjustment to college life.
Pavey is currently double-majoring in environmental science and journalism. Malynn said she admits that her academic achievements and struggles up to this point in the semester can provide a tough learning curve.
“Over the past few weeks, I have come to realize that I have a tendency to procrastinate on larger assignments, my brain shuts down and I refuse to comprehend the assignment at all,” Pavey said.
Despite her early struggles, Pavey found new ways to utilize her creativity in a way that made tough assignments a bit less impossible.
“I have now found that if I break down the assignment into smaller sections, it doesn’t seem as large or daunting of a task,” Pavey said.
Outside of her academics, Pavey has quickly found new ways to become an impactful part of Drake’s constantly growing community. Pavey has done this by joining the Bulldog Tails student organization, a group that fundraises and advocates for their partner group IOWA Service Dogs. IOWA Service Dogs is a nonprofit organization that trains service dogs for first responders and veterans.
Additionally, Pavey contributes to the student workforce in the Bell Center as a lifeguard on the weekends. These are just some of the ways Pavey contributes to Drake’s community every day.
Students around campus have noticed Pavey’s qualities as well, and some students speak highly of her ability to connect with others through compassion and a goal of community-building.
“Malynn is an amazing person who deeply cares for others,” Sophia Presser said. “She is strong-willed and hardworking, making her a great person to work with and be around.”
Beyond Drake’s academics and student organizations, Pavey is a fan of sports, theater, and art. Pavey said she enjoys painting and drawing in her free time.
Pavey has advice for other first-years, as well.
“It is okay to take a step back for a minute,” Pavey said. “You don’t have to work all the time and continue to be frustrated with the assignment you may be struggling with. It’s better to take small steps rather than go headfirst into everything all the time. Take a deep breath, realize that you can do this, and split up the assignment into more tangible sections. You’ve got this.”
Pavey is just one example of the many success stories blooming within Drake’s campus, exemplifying and cementing all that makes Drake University an extraordinary place to be.
The “Outstanding First-Years” column presents a profile of one first-year student each week, summarizing their successes up to this point in their college experience. The young students featured on this column have displayed exceeding academic performance and on-campus involvement, along with contributing to the campus community in a positive way.
