Rector Gives Back
April 03, 2019 | Football, Trojan Outreach, USC Ripsit Blog, Features
His flights and lodging were booked. Christian Rector was all set to visit the Dominican Republic during his last spring break as a USC student.
But a voice in the back of his head told the rising senior defensive end to stay in Los Angeles and log some hours at his new internship at the Weingart Center.
Rector started off as a political economy major at USC, but what he calls a "spiritual awakening" helped him change course and start studying non-governmental organizations and social change.
"I wanted to challenge myself," Rector said. "Thinking about my background and going to Loyola High School, a big thing was giving back to the community. That's something that they preached a lot in high school — being a man for others — and even my mom instilled in me with the church and my youth group and stuff like that."
This semester, a professor connected Rector with the Weingart Center, and Rector's dedication to the internship led him to postpone his anticipated spring break trip. The Weingart Center is a non-profit that aims to break the cycle of homelessness through residential and community programs in LA, and Rector begin interning for their General Relief Opportunities For Work (GROW) Program.
Rector brings a unique skill set to his internship. His mother works in human resources, so she helped Rector write a resume back when he was a freshman in high school. Using that knowledge, he's helping people recently released from prison craft and print resumes and apply for jobs online so they can get back on their feet.
"A lot of them don't know how to use a computer or do tasks like that," Rector explained.
Rector's mother, Allison (who was on the USC women's rowing team in the 80s), influenced more than just the skills he uses at his current internship; She has inspired his future goals.
In addition to a career in the NFL, Rector hopes to one day run his own non-profit focused on providing after school care to children.
"My after school program was big for me growing up," Rector said. "Being raised by a single mother who worked a lot of hours, from 6 in the morning to 6 at night and being one of the last kids to get picked up, I just remember playing all these games and sports — football, soccer, basketball. And I remember the volunteers and the people that shaped me while my mom was at work. That was really important to me."
But a voice in the back of his head told the rising senior defensive end to stay in Los Angeles and log some hours at his new internship at the Weingart Center.
Rector started off as a political economy major at USC, but what he calls a "spiritual awakening" helped him change course and start studying non-governmental organizations and social change.
"I wanted to challenge myself," Rector said. "Thinking about my background and going to Loyola High School, a big thing was giving back to the community. That's something that they preached a lot in high school — being a man for others — and even my mom instilled in me with the church and my youth group and stuff like that."
This semester, a professor connected Rector with the Weingart Center, and Rector's dedication to the internship led him to postpone his anticipated spring break trip. The Weingart Center is a non-profit that aims to break the cycle of homelessness through residential and community programs in LA, and Rector begin interning for their General Relief Opportunities For Work (GROW) Program.
Rector brings a unique skill set to his internship. His mother works in human resources, so she helped Rector write a resume back when he was a freshman in high school. Using that knowledge, he's helping people recently released from prison craft and print resumes and apply for jobs online so they can get back on their feet.
"A lot of them don't know how to use a computer or do tasks like that," Rector explained.
Rector's mother, Allison (who was on the USC women's rowing team in the 80s), influenced more than just the skills he uses at his current internship; She has inspired his future goals.
In addition to a career in the NFL, Rector hopes to one day run his own non-profit focused on providing after school care to children.
"My after school program was big for me growing up," Rector said. "Being raised by a single mother who worked a lot of hours, from 6 in the morning to 6 at night and being one of the last kids to get picked up, I just remember playing all these games and sports — football, soccer, basketball. And I remember the volunteers and the people that shaped me while my mom was at work. That was really important to me."
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