Lindsey Goodwick

Growing up in Newtown, Lindsey Goodwick knew one thing for sure: she loved animals. Beyond that, as a high school student, she had no definite plans.

“I had no idea what I wanted to study in college,” Goodwick said. “I didn’t even know if I wanted to go to college. I wanted to take a break and give myself some time. After high school, I ended up taking a year off and working for a veterinary clinic as a receptionist, gaining experience in customer service and saving up some funds.”

Goodwick said that she had worked since she was 15 — through high school and beyond. When it was time for her to consider college, she looked into a few options in New England, but ultimately decided to stay local because she really liked being close to home near her friends and family. She also wanted to maintain employment in her community, so Western Connecticut State University was a great option since she could commute.

Enrolled as an Anthropology/Sociology major, Goodwick soon found a way to combine her love of nature with her studies, by taking an internship with the Roots & Shoots office on campus. The office served as a regional and national center of excellence that trained university students, faculty and administrators to develop programs for K-12 and college students in local, regional and global conservation.

As a student intern with Roots & Shoots, Lindsey Goodwick had the opportunity to introduce her father to Dr. Jane Goodall.

“My Roots & Shoots internship was one of the best things that has ever happened to me,” Goodwick said. “It set me on a trajectory to work in the nonprofit sector spanning 20 years and gave me the opportunity to meet Jane Goodall on multiple occasions. For two years, I visited classrooms to teach young people about animals, the environment, and their community. I organized events and fairs. I created partnerships with local organizations such as Green Chimneys and the Wolf Conservation Center. One year, I organized an event to bring a real wolf named Atka to visit campus to educate people about wolves and their importance to our ecosystems.”

Goodwick and her friends also initiated new ways for like-minded students to build friendships and become involved. “My friends and I started the Outdoor Club where we organized hikes and even tie dye events on the quad,” she explained.

In addition to her experiences through her internship and with the Outdoor Club, Goodwick took advantage of WestConn’s small class sizes to develop relationships with her professors, several of whom left a lasting impression. “I loved Averell Manes’ vivacious attitude and the way she spoke her mind,” Goodwick said. “Laurie Weinstein was most definitely my biggest influence. As an Anthropology major, I attended a fair amount of her classes. One year she organized a two-week trip to Gunnison, Colorado, for an archeological dig in partnership with Western Colorado University. In addition to the educational aspect, she took us on a tour of southern Colorado where we visited Mesa Verde among other national treasures. We still remain good friends to this day.”

Lindsey Goodwick in Gunnison, Colorado, with fellow students and faculty.

Goodwick received her WestConn undergraduate degree in Anthropology/Sociology in 2006. Since then, the student who once wasn’t sure she wanted to go to college, has built an impressive career in the nonprofit sector and went on to obtain an M.B.A.

“My experiences at WestConn paved the way for me to launch into the nonprofit sector focusing on the natural world,” Goodwick said. “After graduating in 2006, I moved to Maryland and worked as a Conservation Assistant for the National Audubon Society on a 950-acre wildlife refuge in the Chesapeake Bay. Over the years I took roles as a Volunteer Manager/Educator at a wildlife rehabilitation center in Colorado to fundraising for animal and disability causes in Oregon. It would be nine years since graduating from WCSU before I received my M.B.A. in Nonprofit Management (2015) from the University of Portland to further solidify my experience in the nonprofit sector, which all started as an intern at WCSU.”

Goodwick continued, “If you’re looking for a school that feels like home, where you’ll receive personal support from your professors and your community, where you’ll have access to fun activities and extracurricular opportunities, WCSU is the place for you. Go Wolves!”

Western Connecticut State University changes lives by providing all students with a high-quality education that fosters their growth as individuals, scholars, professionals and leaders in a global society. Our vision: To be widely recognized as a premier public university with outstanding teachers and scholars who prepare students to contribute to the world in a meaningful way.