Meet a Commit to Connect Champion: Erica Carroll
@Erica Carroll serves as Founder and CEO of StudentsCare, an organization based out of Philadelphia, PA, that promotes social connection by partnering college students with isolated older adults and hospitalized children. StudentsCare places a strong emphasis on tracking data.
Tell us about the work that your organization does. What is your mission and what population(s) do you serve?
StudentsCare connects college students nationwide with hospitalized children, isolated older adults, and their families. Our student “Buddies” are a source of fun, friendship, and support to help combat loneliness among these vulnerable populations.
Please tell us about the goals of the program you are involved with and how you support social connection?
Social engagement is at the heart of what we do. We build connections and caring relationships to support vulnerable populations. Our Hospital Buddy Program is a crucial source of direct support and social engagement for pediatric patients. Working alongside hospital staff, we connect college students with young patients to provide much-needed emotional relief during long hospital stays. Our Buddies make weekly visits to children in the hospital, engaging them in activities such as arts and crafts, reading, games, and more, both in hospital playrooms and at their bedside.
Our Senior Buddy Program fosters meaningful intergenerational connections by pairing college students with older adults in assisted living facilities. Through these relationships, we help reduce social isolation and loneliness, improving the overall well-being of the residents and the community.
Share one of your top achievements or a success story.
Ashley, one of our student Buddies, discovered StudentsCare during the COVID-19 pandemic and volunteered to help isolated older adults. She formed a close bond with Juan, a 94-year-old former airline mechanic from Colombia. They connected through phone calls, engaging in meaningful conversations about family, love, and shared interests—like math and cooking. They were able to meet in person, once COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Ashley became like a granddaughter to Juan. They continued to talk most mornings until Juan passed away. This was a tremendous loss for Juan’s family and for Ashley.
Through our program, Ashley was able to form a special connection with Juan’s daughters, Josefina and Martha, as they bonded over memories of Juan and the special man he was. Together, they returned to the senior living facility where Juan lived to promote intergenerational relationships. Ashley is grateful for StudentsCare and the life-changing experience it provided.
Why is promoting social connectedness important to the community/population you serve? Why and when did you start incorporating social connectedness into your programming?
Social connection has been a part of our organization from day one. In 2010, while a student at the University of Florida, I was looking for a volunteer experience to prepare me for a career in health care. I started volunteering in a local hospital but found my time at the hospital was being spent doing clerical tasks and not directly helping to meet the needs of patients, especially the children. I saw young patients and families in need of support and came up with a solution to provide meaningful connection and engagement. I recruited like-minded classmates and paired each of them with children in the pediatric oncology unit. We would visit the patients weekly—sometimes even several times a week. This program evolved into our Hospital Buddy Program that still exists today. In September 2013, I established StudentsCare to help bring this program to hospitals and college campuses across the country. In 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and we saw the impacts on the older adult community, we decided to expand our mission to serve this population. Given our proven history tackling social isolation among pediatric patients, we felt we were well-equipped to meet the critical needs grappling older adults across the country.
Any exciting projects coming up?
In the fall, we will launch pre/post surveys using the Campaign to End Loneliness Measurement Tool to measure the effect of our Senior Buddy Program. Our student Buddies will help to administer the pre and post survey to older adult participants. We expect participants' scores to decrease over time, indicating their feelings of loneliness have decreased. We anticipate as participants’ loneliness improves, caregiver stress will also decrease. We also have started to use the Revised Aging Semantic Differential Scale to assess students’ attitudes towards older adults. We will administer pre and post surveys and anticipate lower scores on post surveys (less ageist attitudes).
Do you have tips for others looking to increase social connection and engagement programming or a key resource you can share?
Creating strong social connections and engaging with your audience takes consistent effort, creative thinking, and the ability to adapt. By tracking metrics and continuously evaluating the program to ensure it is meeting the needs of your community and intended goals, you can develop programming that is truly meaningful and has a lasting impact.
Do you have any recommended reading for others interested in this topic?
"Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World" by United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy. Drawing on scientific research, Dr. Murthy emphasizes the importance of social connection and offers practical strategies for building and maintaining meaningful relationships.
How can others connect with your work? Do you have a project website?