Christopher Rolin
About Me!
I have always considered myself to be a motivated and determined individual. It is my goal to be successful, so I make it my mission to push through obstacles that face me in life. I can have this mentality because of what my family has taught me. My two sisters and I were born to an Immigrant father from Haiti and a Haitian American mother. I learned many things from them, the essential being that resilience, persistence, and hard work will ultimately lead to success.
My alma mater Old Dominion University is a school with a reputation for being diverse, inclusive, and prestigious. This institution is where I learned skill sets and traits that molded me into the person I am today. As you will witness below, I was heavily involved on campus. I was an active member of SWL, OACU, and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. I am forever indebted to my undergraduate experiences because I established transferable skills that guided me through the professional realm.
I graduated with a bachelor's degree in Exercise Science, and after graduating in 2019, I worked as a Rehab technician at Inova Hospital. It was once my aspiration to be a Doctor of Physical Therapy; however, after working in the field, I decided to follow a new career path in cybersecurity, and I am now enrolled in Old Dominions Masters of Cybersecurity.
I understand coming from a Health care background might be a bit confusing and is a major change in the type of profession; however, cybersecurity is a subject that I enjoy. Technology is an industry that is continuously advancing, which I find to be the best kind of challenge in a career, and what makes it easier for me is that I have always had a niche for it. It is with high hopes that after graduating from the Master's program, that I will one day become a System Administrator.
I take pride in being a dynamic professional who can build relationships and be a part of projects and initiatives from concept to completion. I understand how to make critical decisions during challenges with a team, and most of all I am an adaptable and transformable leader. I am confident that my passion, willingness to learn, and numerous qualities that I have obtained from my parents, undergraduate experiences, and professional work will help me turn my dream into reality!
Involvement
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.
While at Old Dominion University I became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. which is the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African-Americans. The Fraternity was founded at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York by seven college men who recognized the need for a strong bond of brotherhood among African descendants in this country. Our main principles are scholarship, fellowship, good character, and the uplifting of humanity.
While in the chapter I served as Vice President, and accomplished several things as a leader among men. Under my leadership and with the collaborative efforts of the members in the chapter, we accomplished many things. We competed at conventions displaying our outreach, fundraising, acts of service, and our programming ability for the community of Norfolk and ODU on a state, regional, and national level. In my position of leadership, I developed confidence, improved public speaking, and overall focus.
Success Without Limitations
At Old Dominion, I was also an active member of Success Without Limitations, a community service based organization for students on campus. Our main focus is to create a culturally friendly family-like environment not only to our fellow monarchs but to the surrounding communities as well. Each member was expected to complete 10 hours of community service per semester, and participate in the planning and feedback of events such as Black Art Matters, Webb Jams, Unity Fest and more!
One of the many fun events I participated in as a member of SWL was the Cultural Explosion competition. This inclusive, friendly competition brought out several different ethnic groups like the Students of East African Descent, African Student Association, and the Indian Student Association to display their cultures in a the art form of dance. SWL teamed along side A.S.A & S.E.A.D to win a check of $5,000, the money then donated to non profitable organizations in the Norfolk Community.
Open Arms Community Uplift (OACU)
Open arms community uplift is another community service based organization that I was a member of while attending Old Dominion. OACU main objective is to empower people through great service anytime, anyplace, anywhere by any means necessary.
With OACU I have been apart of initiatives such as Project Mayday 31 where we provided food and other resources to families within the Norfolk community, IChooseLove where we helped equip students, faculty and staff with opportunities to know understand, and appreciate the value of all human life, and lastly OpenUpForKids where we aided with donations to GoodMojo thrift shop a non profitable organization in to Norfolk.
