{"id":6394,"date":"2021-06-02T10:53:57","date_gmt":"2021-06-02T15:53:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin-new\/?post_type=campus_story&p=6394"},"modified":"2021-06-02T10:53:57","modified_gmt":"2021-06-02T15:53:57","slug":"the-power-of-yes-madison-hale-21-embraced-opportunities-while-at-uw-superior","status":"publish","type":"campus_story","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/story\/the-power-of-yes-madison-hale-21-embraced-opportunities-while-at-uw-superior\/","title":{"rendered":"The power of \u201cYes\u201d – Madison Hale \u201921 embraced opportunities while at UW-Superior"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo
Madison Hale, center<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI just started saying, \u2018Yes, I\u2019m going to do anything that\u2019s getting thrown my way,\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The philosophy revealed opportunities that fit perfectly with her major:\u00a0social work<\/a>. She chose it because she loves giving back.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to help people,\u201d Hale said. \u201cI really like the idea of just being able to spend my whole life volunteering. My grandfather raised me that way. He said, \u2018You should always help people when you can.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

From the moment she took her first courses in the\u00a0UWS social work program<\/a>, Hale knew she\u2019d made the right decision. \u201cIt felt really good and I loved it, so I stuck with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She has appreciated the vast expertise of the entire department, especially mentor Cherie Dakota, assistant professor of social work. \u201cShe\u2019s been one of the biggest, strongest supports for me,\u201d Hale said.<\/p>\n

Outside the classroom, Hale immersed herself in campus activities. She was drawn to one volunteer opportunity in particular: The\u00a0Veteran and Nontraditional Student Center<\/a>. Its mission is to provide engagement and academic support to veterans and non-traditional students.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been amazing because I got to help develop programs, run programs and organize events,\u201d Hale said. \u201cI met some amazing non-traditional students and veterans. One of my favorite parts of the job is seeing them succeed, because that\u2019s the coolest thing in my book. They come in and they\u2019re struggling, and the next thing you know, they\u2019re graduating!\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019s been heavily involved with the VNSC for three years. She\u2019s helped out with too many events and activities to count, but one of her proudest achievements was helping to organize the annual Seussville Family Fun Night. The major event usually draws up to 800, targeting student parents and community members.<\/p>\n

Hale\u2019s support of the VNSC branched out to its parent office, the\u00a0Department of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion<\/a>. As if that wasn\u2019t enough, she also spent two years serving on the\u00a0Student Government Association<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Of course, she also found time to devote to her studies. She\u2019s graduating early, thanks to some credits she\u2019d earned in high school and over the summer. Her final GPA is 3.8, exceeding her own expectations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought if I went to college and I got a degree I might do OK, but I didn\u2019t think I\u2019d do that,\u201d said Hale, who is the first in her family to graduate from college. \u201cI definitely want to say it\u2019s in large part due to the faculty and staff at UWS, because they\u2019re amazing supports.\u201d<\/p>\n

She never envisioned herself doing a research project, but her mentors in the\u00a0McNair Scholars program<\/a>\u00a0provided her with invaluable encouragement. Her McNair research project, \u201cHealth Care Disparities and Needs in Native American Veteran Population,\u201d was complicated by COVID-19. Many veterans\u2019 organizations were closed because of the pandemic, but Hale pressed on. She connected with veterans from all tribes within Minnesota and Wisconsin.<\/p>\n

Hale\u2019s project revealed some major themes for improvement in the health care of indigenous veterans. It also revealed a new passion for her: research. \u201cI enjoyed it. That was my niche. I love policy writing and grant writing and research,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She\u2019ll put those newfound research skills to work in the generalist Master of Social Work program at St. Cloud State University this fall. And as she closes out her career at UWS, she has much to be proud of \u2014 including winning the\u00a0Chancellor\u2019s Leadership Award<\/a>. It\u2019s all a credit to her courageous spirit and authentic generosity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been involved in a lot of things and I\u2019ve definitely overcome a lot of things I never thought I would,\u201d Hale said. \u201cI\u2019ve just been very thankful for every opportunity I\u2019ve had and the people I\u2019ve gotten to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI just started saying, \u2018Yes, I\u2019m going to do anything that\u2019s getting thrown my way,\u2019\u201d she said. The philosophy revealed opportunities that fit perfectly with her major:\u00a0social work. She chose it because she loves giving back. \u201cI wanted to help people,\u201d Hale said. \u201cI really like the idea of just being able to spend my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":6397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","institution":[110],"story_category":[],"class_list":["post-6394","campus_story","type-campus_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","institution-uw-superior"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story\/6394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/campus_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6394"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=6394"},{"taxonomy":"story_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story_category?post=6394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}