By: Dezaray Barr
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Brittany Makin graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) in 2015 with a double major in social work and addictions counseling. “My mom was alumni there, so IWU was on my radar. I went for a visit in 2010 and fell in love with the school,” Makin shared. “I later had more visits and checked out the Social Work program and loved it. I also took two classes my senior year of high school at IWU and loved the classroom and feel of the school.”
During her time at IWU, Makin made a lot of friends, including her closest friends to this day! She said, “I enjoyed the challenge of both of my majors and admired my professors – their hearts for Godwas so inspiring. I learned and grew so much in the understanding of the overlap of serving God through serving others.” She also enjoyed the small size of classes that IWU offered, specifically through her social work program.
Coming from a public high school, Makin said that the transition to a Christian school was difficult for her at first. “Over time though, I grew to appreciate the diversity of the students and how everyone had a way of internalizing their faith and living it out in such genuine ways,” she said. “It truly helped me to press into my own beliefs and figure out what I believed for myself, outside of my upbringing and what I was used to in my home church. I loved how our faith was woven deeply into our academic studies in a very tangible way.”
Now, Makin is working as a Case Manager at White’s Residential and Family Services in Wabash, IN. Makin grew up on the campus as a staff kid for the first 12 years of her life. After she graduated in 2015, she was led right back to White’s, and that is where she met her husband. In 2016, she attended grad school for social work, but returned to White’s in the spring of 2017 to work as a Case Manager. “I love this organization and the mission of serving God through serving our kids. It aligns very much with my training at IWU, and I absolutely love serving the teenagers we work with here. Although very challenging, it is also extremely rewarding,” Makin explained.
Some fun facts about Makin include that she’s been to India three times where she’s taught women to make jewelry as a trade. With her husband, Makin coaches a junior high and high school soccer team together. She is also the third generation from her family to work at White’s!
If Makin could give one piece of advice to IWU students, she’d encourage them to continue along the journey that they’re experiencing. She said, “I switched my major a billion times during my stay, and every time I became very discouraged… I am still finding out new things I like daily and dreaming about what I will be when I grow up. It’s a journey… not a simple checklist.”
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Written by Dezaray Barr, PR Specialist for the Alumni Office. Dezaray is a senior Strategic Communication, Journalism and Honors Humanities triple major at Indiana Wesleyan University in the John Wesley Honors College. Visit Dez’s website at www.dezaraybarr.weebly.com.