During the first semester of her first year at NC State, Brock Derrow (Psychology ’22) broke her collarbone and needed three surgeries to repair it. When she returned to class, she quickly discovered that it was nearly impossible to wear a backpack while her shoulder was also in a sling.
One day, a classmate noticed her struggles and recommended she check out the Wolfpack Pick Up Program, which gave her free golf cart rides to class, her residence hall, the dining halls, the libraries and other destinations on NC State’s Main Campus.
“I was able to start booking rides the next day online through the scheduling system, and I used it pretty much all of that first semester because it was so hard for me to get around,” Derrow recalled. “They would come and pick me up at Bragaw and take me wherever I needed to go, and it was super convenient.”
After being introduced to the program during her first semester, Derrow discovered a passion for accessibility and helping others get around campus.
“After using the service myself my first semester, I realized I wanted to stay involved with it however I could because I really love the mission behind it,” she said. “We not only serve people with injuries, but also disabilities, so we’re providing services for many, many people on campus.”
Derrow is now the student coordinator and leads the entire Wolfpack Pick Up fleet, which includes four golf carts and one wheelchair-accessible cart. She and her fellow drivers give around 40 rides per day to students, faculty, staff and campus visitors with injuries or disabilities. The majority of rides are scheduled through the Wolfpack Pick Up website, but when business is slow, Derrow and her colleagues patrol the campus and offer impromptu rides to people to anyone who needs assistance. Plans are also in the works to extend the service to Centennial Campus.
Derrow will graduate this December, but after nearly three years with the program, she has left a lasting impression.
“Brock Derrow is an absolute gem and the glue that has held the Wolfpack Pick Up service together through COVID,” said Justine Hollingshead, assistant vice chancellor and Derrow’s supervisor. “As our student coordinator, she exhibits excellent customer service, supports and mentors her peers, and is attentive to every detail. We are fortunate to have such caring and compassionate student leaders.”
While Derrow credits the Wolfpack Pick Up program as one of the most influential programs in her undergraduate career, she has found plenty of other ways to get involved and help her community. This past summer, she helped Hollingshead plan for the return of Packapalooza during Wolfpack Welcome Week.
Within the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Derrow is a student ambassador, a two-time recipient of the college’s Daniel C. Gunter Jr Scholarship, and has worked in two psychology-based research labs where she has served as a tutor and coach for reading intervention for elementary school students. Through that experience, she was able to become a teaching assistant. She is also fluent in Spanish and has helped translate research materials from English to Spanish in the psychology lab. She has also used her bilingual skills off campus, working at Wake Smiles Dental Clinic where she translates patients’ needs to the dentist.
Derrow is now applying to grad schools and planning to obtain her master’s degree in mental health counseling.
“It means the world to be recognized as a Howling Success,” Derrow said. “It feels really nice to know that somebody has recognized me for all the stuff I’ve been doing throughout undergrad and that all my hard work has paid off.”
Learn more about the Wolfpack Pick Up Program or schedule a ride on the website: https://wolfpackpickup.dasa.ncsu.edu/.
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This post was originally published in DASA.
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