Through her undergraduate coursework and volunteer experiences at York College of Pennsylvania, alumna Khora Pawelczyk ’26 found a passion for bringing people together and a work trajectory she never expected.
Khora Pawelczyk ’26 arrived at York College of Pennsylvania with volunteerism as one of the requirements of her Promise Scholars program.
Now, as a graduate student, serving others has become a defining element of her college experience. It has also helped her discover a talent for leadership and a new direction for her career. Pawelczyk, a York native and member of the first graduating class of York Academy Regional Charter School, chose York College because the Promise Scholars offered an opportunity to pursue her education while giving back to the community she calls home.
The York College Community Opportunity Scholarship Program (YCCOSP), which formerly included the soon-to-be-phased-out Promise Scholarship Program, provides deserving high school students in the York City School District with tuition-free education, free room, and a free meal plan for up to four years.
Learning logistics and leadership
Pawelczyk toyed with the idea of pursuing a Fine Arts degree before beginning undergraduate studies as a Nursing major with a Fine Arts minor. But after reaching clinical rotations, she realized that direct patient care wasn’t the right career path for her. During her junior year, she switched to Health Sciences, focusing on psychology and management while continuing with her Fine Arts minor.
The change allowed her to build on her science-focused nursing background while exploring the organizational side of healthcare. Outside the classroom, Pawelczyk became involved in helping with orientation for new students. She served as an orientation leader before stepping into the role of an orientation coordinator during her junior and senior years.
She helped arrange events, support orientation leaders, and manage the plethora of details that made initial college experiences impactful for new students. Through working on orientation, Pawelczyk discovered a love of logistical planning and behind-the-scenes staff management.
John Endy ’27, a Marketing and Human Resource Management major who met Pawelczyk through orientation and is now her fiancé, watched her leadership and logistical skills grow through the years.
“Whenever she takes on leadership roles, it fits like a glove,” he says. “She’s very level-headed when it comes to stuff like that.” Pawelczyk also began to see how she could combine her interest in healthcare with her abilities in logistics and leadership.
Taking her education to the next level
After earning her Bachelor of Science degree in Health Sciences in 2026, Pawelczyk returned to York College in the fall to pursue a Master’s in Strategic Leadership and Management.
As part of that program, she stepped into a new position as Graduate Scholar for Volunteer Engagement under the direction of Jessica Kasiga, the College’s Director of Volunteer Engagement. Pawelczyk helps coordinate campus service initiatives and supports student volunteers. She also leads Generations of Hope, a mentorship program that connects York College undergraduate students with youth from two York City middle schools. The program brings younger students to campus for activities centered on caring for themselves, others, their futures, and their communities.
For Pawelczyk, it is also an opportunity to help those students see college as a place where they might belong after they graduate high school. “The motto here is ‘To Serve is To Live,’” she says.
“Giving back to the community is one of the biggest things we do. York College is such a close-knit community, and we’re here to make sure we’re helping people care for themselves and others.”
Turning college experiences into career skills
Kasiga says Pawelczyk has helped strengthen the Generations of Hope program by giving the undergraduate mentors clearer responsibilities during each session. She encourages them to lead activities and build relationships with the middle schoolers. "She's transitioned into generating her own good ideas for continuous improvement, instead of following the status quo," Kasiga says.
The Graduate Scholar for Volunteer Engagement position is a one-year post. Afterward, Pawelczyk hopes to bring the skills she is learning to healthcare operations, ideally in a pediatric setting, where she envisions supporting the people and systems that allow professionals to do their jobs effectively.
“I want to be able to walk into another work environment and make it a better environment to work,” Pawelczyk says. “I want to make where people work warmer and more welcoming.”
