How Aliyah Isaacs ’26 Learned to Love Service-Learning at Bentley

Before coming to Bentley from Brooklyn, N.Y., Aliyah Isaacs ’26 hadn’t heard about the Bentley Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Center (BSLCE). Now, she’s part of the nearly 1,000 students who participate in it, and she can’t imagine her college experience without it. Find out how Bentley and service-learning fit into her personal mission to challenge the status quo, try new things and defy limits. 

Was there a moment when you knew Bentley was the right school for you? 

I originally had my heart set on attending an HBCU [Historically Black College and University] just to feel comfortable with people who look like me. But after doing a little soul searching, I realized that to get comfortable, you have to get a little uncomfortable. Even though I knew that Bentley would have fewer students of color on campus than an HBCU, I saw it as an opportunity to promote diversity. I always want to bring a little bit of Brooklyn and my Caribbean culture wherever I go. I also knew Bentley had my best interest at heart through resources like the Multicultural Center and MOSAIC experience for first-year students of color. Bentley is an incredibly good business school, and it was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down. Now, it’s a second home to me.  

When did you first learn about the Bentley Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Center? 

I heard about service-learning during my first semester, but I took a step back from it because I was already involved with Caribbean Ancestry Student Association, the Honors Program and the FirstGen Presidential Fellows leadership development program. As I learned more about it, I decided to attach a fourth credit service-learning option to one of my courses because it included service-learning in the community, guidance from my professor and personal reflection assignments. It was a great experience and went way beyond earning an extra credit. I loved the genuine people I met through the program. The world is filled with a lot of negativity, but I’ve recognized that it’s the small steps that really work toward counteracting larger social justice issues.  

What kinds of service-learning roles have you had since then? 

I’ve served on the Global Citizenship Committee to raise awareness of important public issues and the Special Events Committee to create bonding experiences for our BSLCE students because sometimes these topics can be very heavy. 

I’ve also worked with the Chesterbrook After-School Program — an on-site mentoring and tutoring program for youth in a lower-income neighborhood in Waltham — and served as a program manager. We help with homework, do activities or sometimes just be there to listen. You never know what someone is going through and the potential impact of a genuine connection. That’s what keeps me coming back each semester. I believe Bentley has one of the strongest service-learning programs, and just being a part of it is amazing.  

How does service-learning fit into your academics? 

I’m a Management major and Psychology minor, and I feel like service-learning caters to both. My ability to converse and connect with youth is more on the psychology side, and the management piece is being able to build initiatives and manage strong teams and programs.  

In the Bentley Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Center, we believe in the connection between what you learn in the classroom and service-learning — and I’ve seen it happen, even in not very obvious ways. One example happened in my Computer Information Systems class when the code I wrote for a technology assignment was malfunctioning. Sometimes the patience you need for computers is the same patience you need to work with young people who might challenge you. You need to be able to find alternate ways to approach a situation. There are so many lessons, and sometimes they are not directly in front of you. 

Could you explain more about your work with The DREAM Program? 

BSLCE introduced me to an opportunity for an internship at DREAM and I was able to pursue it because of the Pulsifer Career Development Center’s Nonprofit Summer Internship Program. I applied to DREAM because of its mission to reverse disparities and social justice issues by providing mentoring and activities for underserved children and teens. After the internship, I was offered a part-time role as a strategic development coordinator to optimize data and create systems to track funding. I also help the development team with its annual appeal by prospecting individual donors. One of my DREAM supervisors [Christina Cramer ’21] went to Bentley and had been a service-learning program manager. Being involved in BSLCE has opened so many doors for me. 

Before you joined The DREAM Program, you started a very different “dream” at Bentley.  

It’s very ironic, because the student organization I started this semester is called D.R.E.A.M. — which stands for “driven, resilient, empowered achievers in motion” — to bring more diversity and culture to Bentley. It’s a stomp-and-shake team based on an African American-inspired form of cheer that uses a mixture of dance and step and is popular at HBCUs. That, and serving as vice president of Caribbean Ancestry Student Association, helps me stay connected to my Caribbean roots. That’s something that very much shapes my identity.  

As if you’re not busy enough, you also run your own beauty services business, Glammed by Lily V.  

I like to make people feel good and happy. I’ve always said makeup enhances the beauty you already have, and I mean it. The mission of Glammed by Lily V is to enhance clients’ natural beauty and heighten their confidence: make them feel beautiful before and after their glam session. I also try to make the sessions a time when clients can open up and have someone listen to them. In a world full of chaos, I hope I can bring people a little peace. 

What are your career plans? 

I do want to see what corporate life might be like, but I know that I still want to be connected with nonprofits in some way. The Bentley Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Center opened my eyes to nonprofits but also connected me to groups of people with different backstories, history and culture.  

Even though sometimes I’ve had a little self-doubt, finding different communities and staying involved has been a major part of me feeling at home at Bentley. When you have a good environment, you’re able to thrive and push your limits.