Riley Earns Habitat Scholarship, Pursuing Criminal Justice

She is excited to start her final year of undergrad and plans to apply to a sociology master’s program after graduation. 

This past summer, Riley worked as an education intern abroad in the Netherlands. There, she taught and tutored children who live on a military base. This experience not only gives her school credit but also shows her commitment to education for herself and others. With this experience under her belt, she’s ready to take on senior year at IU.  

Riley is determined to start strong and stay on track with her organized schedule and her extracurricular activities. A few of her favorite hobbies involve music, history, media, and anything related to theater arts. Outside of academics, Riley is starting guitar lessons and is pursuing a work study role as a beginners EMT.  

IU is now Riley’s home but comes second to her home with family. The Jeffries moved into their Habitat home in 2007. As long as she could remember, this home was always the constant. This is the place where she celebrated her first birthday parties and holidays. This is where she has memories of Christmas traditions. Riley recalls believing in magic when her and their Habitat neighbors would do the elf on the shelf tradition.  

As a kid, Riley remembers her mom being very open with her about their finances. She shared that the stability of an affordable mortgage made it possible for her to participate in extracurricular activities like show choir, marching band, and even sparked her love for traveling. Looking ahead, Riley views the opportunity of homeownership as a tangible investment in herself. 

This scholarship is helping her take the next steps in using her love for sociology and music to inspire understanding and joy. We can’t wait to see the impact Riley will continue to make in her career and community.