A place to find yourself

Melina Rallis, '26, has overcome many obstacles throughout her time at La Salle University. As she prepares to graduate, she's leaving with confidence in herself and her purpose.

Rallis feels confident in her ability to be a good coworker and leader, and professional in any setting as those values have been instilled in her since day one in the School of Business.

Despite changing her major, a global pandemic, and challenges in her personal life, Melina Rallis, '26, always knew she wanted to earn her undergraduate degree from La Salle University. As she concludes her final year, she's not only doing that; she's also found her passion.

Rallis initially came to La Salle in 2019 as an early education major. She was drawn to the University after hearing good things from high school friends and enjoying the more intimate community size on campus. She also wanted to stay close to her hometown of Levittown, Pa.

Just over a semester into Rallis being a college student, Covid-19 cases started rising in Pennsylvania.

"I remember being in math class in Holroyd, and we were looking at the numbers of Covid cases, and it was around seven. I remember us saying oh there's no way this is going to be a thing," Rallis said. "Then Covid hit."

For Rallis, along with the rest of the Explorer community, that meant going home. Although everyone left their belongings on campus, she said, after about two weeks, they got the call that learning was going remote, and they had 48 hours to get their things.

Although campus was closed, Rallis had signed a lease for a local apartment that she couldn't break. So, she spent the next two semesters in Zoom classes. As an education major, she still had to complete practical hours, but these were done remotely.

"It just completely transformed everything I knew about teaching. Whatever I knew was completely different," she said. "I remember being in Zoom classes thinking, is this reality now? Is this where I'm going with my career?"

For Rallis, who described herself as someone who has always been incredibly involved, the experience was "isolating," she said, and led to a lot of self-reflection, including thoughts about a change in what she wanted for herself.

Despite it all, in the fall semester of 2021, Rallis returned to campus, still as an early education major. Although she was ready to immerse herself in her studies and the Explorer community again, life had other plans.

In December of that year, Rallis' mother, grandmother, and grandfather all received cancer diagnoses within a week of each other, which took a huge toll on her.

"I was checked out of school," she said. "I didn't go to my classes. I didn't even show up to any of my finals."

With it being just her and her mom at home, the role of primary caretaker fell to Rallis. Despite her mother's insistence that she return to school, Rallis knew that it wasn't a good idea.

When her mother, whose cancer was detected early but still needed medical treatment, and grandmother both had surgeries scheduled for the first week of the spring semester, Rallis knew it wasn't the right time for her to go back.

Rallis started the process of requesting a leave of absence, working with the late Brother Bob Kinzler, '77, F.S.C, assistant vice president for student advocacy and support, to figure out what would be best for her.

"He was extremely phenomenal throughout that whole process," Rallis said. "He always told me that there would a spot for me here, no matter what happened. He was very caring about everything, very empathetic."

For the next semester, Rallis took the leave of absence, helping her mother recover. With things more settled at home, she was ready to go back to school, and to finally rethink her major.

"This was my chance to say, 'ok, I'm going back, fresh start,'" Rallis said.

Although Rallis was ready for a fresh start, her grades from the classes she was in before her leave of absence meant her GPA had fallen to a level that put her on academic probation. She made the decision to attend a community college as a full-time student to improve her GPA and, hopefully, return to 20^th and Olney.

With everything she'd been through, Rallis was questioning what she should do next while she was taking her community college classes. She watched her friends graduate and had multiple conversations with family members about all her other options. She distinctly remembers one with her father, where he strongly suggested that she consider other avenues, instead of returning to La Salle.

"I said 'no, if I have a degree from anywhere, I want it to say La Salle on it,' I remember specifically saying that to him. My spot is at La Salle, I'm going to graduate from La Salle, it's going to happen, no matter what," Rallis said. "I knew I had to come back."

In the spring of 2023, Rallis did just that. She was back at 20^th and Olney, this time as a business administration major.

She credits Kinzler and Kristen Garry, MBA '22, assistant dean of the undergraduate business programs, as two of the main reasons for that. Kinzler's continued support and contact throughout her two semesters away showed her that she was a valued member of the community. Garry helped her to rebuild her confidence as well as with the logistics of scheduling her new business classes.

"Kristen Garry motivated me in ways that she probably has no idea that she did," Rallis said. "Two of the people that I owe it all to are Br. Bob and Kristen Garry."

Garry has remained one of Rallis' biggest supporters.

"Melina's path certainly had some obstacles along the way, but where other students would have given up, she didn't. Melina's dedication and hard work got her through them so she could reach her goal. She's proven herself to be resilient, which is such an important skill to have as she navigates this next chapter of life," Garry said. "I was fortunate enough to have had a very small part in her La Sallian journey, but to say I am proud is an understatement. I'll be one of her biggest cheerleaders when she crosses that stage at graduation."

Switching to the School of Business was an easy choice, but Rallis still had to decide exactly what she wanted to do. One of the first classes she took in her new major, Organizational Behavior with Pat Coyle, Ph.D., assistant professor of management and leadership, helped her with that.

She loved the class, and had an instant connection with Coyle, who is now her advisor. He suggested the Management and Leadership Program to Rallis and set out to help her connect what she wanted to do in the future to the rest of her higher education journey.

Rallis had always thought about working in the event or marketing space, and Coyle confirmed that for her.

"He told me you are made for events and that's why you like teaching because you like the whole aspect of leaving people with an impression and leaving them with memories," she said.

With that, Rallis joined the Management and Leadership Program and has loved it ever since. She's learned things int he classroom that she will remember forever, she said, and it's helped her to realize qualities in herself that she didn't know she had.

In particular, the program's emphasis on soft skills, or interpersonal and behavioral traits, versus hard skills, technical and measurable skills, has stood out to her.

"I think it built a lot of my soft skills first, which I like because I didn't really feel like I knew what I was good at or who I was or what I was meant to do beforehand," Rallis said. "I think that's what drew me to management and leadership."

Rallis feels confident in her ability to be a good coworker and leader, and professional in any setting as those values have been instilled in her since day one in the School of Business. She credits the Business Professionalism and Career Prep class she took as really helping her develop these soft skills, and the class professor, Kathy Finnegan, assistant professor of management and leadership, with giving her the confidence to embrace and share her story.

Rallis is already seeing those skills help her in job interviews and other working environments.

"Everything that your job is going to need hard skills wise is going to be able to be learned when you get there," she said. "I think what makes me stand out on a resume or in a job interview is more so my soft skills because I can have the same hard skills as the person next to me but I'm also personable and professional."

After graduation, Rallis hopes to transfer those skills to a job in event coordination. She's currently interviewing for some positions, but would one day like to work in the hospitality events field, most likely for a beverage brand. She would also be interested in working with a sports team.

"If I could run the events for the Philadelphia Eagles, that would be awesome," she said.

While she's looking for the place to start her career, Rallis is also working at her other jobs, many of which she's had throughout her time as a student. She runs social media for two organizations, directs a dance studio-their summer recital is the day before Commencement-and also works as a bartender in Glenside, Pa.

As much as she's had to work to balance all her responsibilities, it's also been deeply rewarding for Rallis.

"Sometimes it's not easy, but I think I've always been a person that can't not move," she said. "My days have to be filled. It's what drives me and fulfills me."

Throughout the busy days and ups and downs of her undergraduate experience, one thing has stuck with Rallis since she first stepped foot on La Salle's campus: the people that surrounded her.

"The people here are just great," she said, adding that she feels that way about everyone that she's encountered. "When I go to my hometown and talk to my hometown friends, they say La Salle people are your people. You've found your people."

She has even already combined her love for the people on campus with her hope to coordinate events. A member of Alpha Sigma Tau sorority during her first four years, Rallis is now the organization's alumni board. In this role, she helps plan events for past and present members to get together, including an annual Phillies game.

"I've bought people back from my sorority who graduated four or five years ago, just because I love La Salle so much and I want them to remember all the great things that La Salle gave them too," she said, adding that there's nothing negative that she can say about her Explorer journey.

Rallis is ready to take on the future with confidence that has been built over her college years.

"In terms of self-development, I think La Salle helped me grow and become an extremely different and better vision of myself," she said. "I feel a lot more like myself. I feel like I've grown so much. I feel like am just so much more sure about myself and what I'm meant to do."

-Naomi Thomas