By Suzy Alstrin
Reinhardt student Daniela Rangel (RU-2026) credits and appreciates her professors, Dr. Amy Cottrill, Dr. SimonPeter Gomez, and Dr. Ken Wheeler, for connecting with amazing opportunities to help shape her future. Rangel recently completed a summer internship with the Cherokee Community Development Agency. She’s working on a scholarly article on free speech. She recently accepted an invitation from the prestigious Harvard Divinity School to join their fall Diversity and Explorations (DivEx) Program. And she works full-time as an advocate at the Cherokee Family Violence Center which fuels her interest in becoming a prosecutor to defend people’s rights.
Referred by Dr. Ken Wheeler, Dean of the College of Humanities, Sciences, and Technology, Rangel became the fifth Reinhardt student to intern with Cherokee County since 2017. She seized the opportunity to develop a projects dashboard for the county’s website and compile a residential permit history and a housing stock inventory.
When Rangel appeared before the Board of Commissioners to address the magnitude of estimated population increases based on construction permits, Dr. Wheeler, Dr. Cottrill, and Dr. Gomez attended in support. She also impressed everyone as she reviewed her templates to update the online information which details residential, commercial, and transportation projects.
Community Development Agency Director Brantley E. Day commended Rangel’s accomplishments, “Daniela did an outstanding job. She is diligent and very thorough. She produced a large amount of work over a short amount of time and has aided our agency with an extremely valuable work product that benefits Cherokee County greatly. Daniela has helped us move agency priorities and objectives forward rapidly at a critical time for us. Daniela represented Reinhardt University extremely well and she has a very successful future ahead.”
Rangel’s inspiration comes from enlightenment to view things from different perspectives. Her interfaith cooperation class with Dr. Cottrill opened her eyes to how different religions view free speech. She’s applying this knowledge to a scholarly article on free speech she is working on with Dr. Gomez, Associate Professor of Political Science. “I hadn’t previously thought about how the expansion of free speech could hurt some minority religious groups,” Rangel explained. As part of the year-long project, she plans to examine the free speech codes of private universities across Georgia, including dress codes.
When religion professor Dr. Cottrill recommended the DivEx program, she seized the chance while cherishing the professor’s assistance in applying. The program explores diversity, social justice, ethical challenges, theology, and how to make an impact. Rangel became one of only a few dozen scholars accepted nationwide to travel to Harvard for three days in September. DivEx also helps students discern whether to consider graduate study in religion. As a history and politics major who plans to attend law school, Rangel expects the opportunity to help her delve into advocating for minority groups.
Managing her time wisely, Rangel plans to continue working with the Cherokee Family Violence Center where she answers hotline calls from across the state in English and Spanish. She is also already studying for the law school admission test. She feels blessed with all her opportunities, “It’s beneficial to have that extra knowledge and try out different fields to see what resonates with me.”
