Kyle Villella

Kyle Villella, RWU Class of 2025, Graduate Program Ambassador: Secondary Special Education

Student

What you were doing before your graduate program at RWU: Prior to being a graduate student at Roger Williams, I also attended Roger Williams for my Undergrad where I double majored in Secondary Education & Spanish.

Your future plans: I am currently employed by a local school district, so for the time-being, I will continue working in this district as part of an amazing team of educators!

Your favorite part(s) of your student experience at RWU: I love the variety of ways that students can get involved. As an undergraduate student, there were an abundance of ways for me to get involved with the campus community and even as a graduate student, those opportunities are not much different. Being part of the Roger community is so amazing and I am so grateful for the various opportunities I have to be part of this campus.

Best advice for students planning to go to graduate school: Trust yourself. The decision to attend graduate school is extremely difficult, so trust yourself that you will make the best decision possible. When in doubt, ask questions and seek advice. No one is in this process alone; there are so many support systems available for students, so take advantage of those and ask any and all questions (even the smallest ones) because you never know if someone else has that same confusion.

Favorite thing to do in the area: Going to Colt State Park is certainly my favorite thing to do in the area. Whether it's going for a drive through colt state park, enjoying bagels from Bristol Bagels, or enjoying the sunset, I always know I can find some peace at Colt.

Additional Stories

Internship, Leadership Roles Prepare Graduate Student for Clinical Therapist Position
Kelice Agosto, RWU Class of 2023
Forensic Mental Health Counseling
“My internship at the Rhode Island State Psychiatric Hospital helped me take what I learned from the classroom and apply it to real world settings. I learned how to conduct competency to stand trial evaluations with individuals with severe and persistent mental illnesses. In my Law and Mental Health class, I learned about the issues the criminal justice system and mental health care faced. At my internship, I witnessed how those issues affected the patients that I worked with.”
A Love of Reading
Sarah Jane DelSanto, RWU Class of 2017
Sarah Jane DelSanto, who graduated with an elementary education degree from RWU in 2015, has a love of reading. To stoke that passion, DelSanto has returned to RWU as a graduate student. Read her reflections on her experience and what she hopes to achieve.
A Buckeye Becomes a Hawk: Going Small for Grad School
Lyndsey Sheldon, RWU Class of 2023
Forensic Mental Health Counseling
Lyndsey Sheldon grew up in a small town in Ohio where everybody knew everybody. After undergraduate life as a Buckeye, she knew it was time to find a tight-knit experience for grad school. “When I knew it was time to get my masters and really buckle down, I knew a small community with interactive professors is what I needed,” she said.