Graduating Senior Aims for Public Service Career

by Veronica Gockenbach '14

Alex Uzarowicz has made the most of his three years at Knox College. The politically active and community-oriented senior has been involved with various organizations, gaining experience that will help prepare him for his long-term goal of winning elective office in the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives.

Uzarowicz, who was born in Argentina and moved to the United States in 2003, recently was selected as student speaker for Knox College's 2013 Commencement exercises. During his time at Knox, he has been a member of Sigma Chi fraternity and has written for The Knox Student and for The College Conservative website.

A political science major, he also founded the Knox Conservatives and served as its president. Uzarowicz said he founded the student-run organization to diversify the political atmosphere on campus.

"The more challenged you are in your values, the more informed you become," he said. "The more you question yourself, the more you have to find out about what you believe. If you're not challenged, you're just stuck," he said.

The Knox Conservatives and Knox Democrats organizations have worked well together on projects such as a campus Rock the Vote initiative and a series of student debates modeled after the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates, he said.

Along with his extracurricular activities, Uzarowicz has worked on campus with the Office of Government and Community Relations and with the Mark and Jeannette Kleine Center for Community Service. At the Center for Community Service, he organized philanthropic activities for fraternities and sororities.

Uzarowicz said he appreciates the academic experiences that Knox has offered him.

"I feel like professors here care. They care about who you are, and they really grow close to you," he said. "They really know their stuff, but they want you to challenge them."

Uzarowicz studied abroad for a term through Knox's program in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he lived with a host family and studied political science and journalism. ­­

"Being abroad teaches you things about yourself that you'd never thought (about) because it places you in uncomfortable situations," he said. "Those are the ones that teach you the most. You learn the most from the environment you're in, the culture you're in."

After graduating from Knox, Uzarowicz will enter the Peace Corps, serving in Central America

"The reason I'm doing the Peace Corps is because I feel like everyone has a meaning in life. And my meaning here is public service," said Uzarowicz, who plans to attend law school after the Peace Corps.

"I love to engage with people, know what their concerns are, and try to find a solution to things. That's what our founders believed in and that's what I believe in."

(Photo at top: Alex Uzarowicz leads prospective students on a tour of Knox College. Photo at right: Speaking with conservative columnist Byron York in the Alumni Room of Old Main.)