Sydney Kotter

Joining us from her home state of Maryland, Sydney Kotter is currently a junior in the psychology major here at BYU. In her free time, Sydney enjoys cooking, painting, and reading, and she is a certified scuba diver! After a brief foray into the statistics major, Sydney chose to major in psychology so she can fulfill her desire to help other people. Sydney plans on being a Child Life Specialist after she graduates, helping children in hospitals and their families deal with the mental health impacts of terminal or long-term illnesses. Sydney has also had many fulfilling experiences working with children as an undergrad. For four months, Sydney volunteered at an orphanage in Romania through the International Language Program (based in Orem), caring for the children and giving them love and affection they were missing out on. Sydney explains: “Even though we didn't speak the same language, and some of the children were disabled and couldn't talk or move, I formed a strong bond with all of them and grew to love helping people.” Sydney has also grown through her experience working at Telos, a residential treatment center for teenage boys, explaining: “Telos has impacted me greatly because I've built such strong relationships with the boys who have experienced some very hard things in life, and I've learned how to better understand and help them. I care about them so much that I would work there even if I didn't get paid.”