Sydney Olinger '23

by Sydney Olinger '23 on October 29, 2022
News Co-Editor

Samanatha Dietel, a current senior  at Providence College, did not expect to attend PC. Dietel went to the fall open house because the school was close to her home in Seekonk, MA, and she planned to go on tours at different schools. One of her first memories of PC was parking in the garage by Ray and seeing dark clouds in the sky. Her dad thought it would pass by without raining, so they left their umbrella in the car. 

In true Providence fashion, five minutes into the tour, it started raining. There was another father and daughter on the tour, each holding an umbrella, who were kind enough to share. This is what truly drew her to PC, and after that day, Dietel knew that PC would become her new home. 

“When I saw the kindness of the Friar family, I knew it was the place I wanted to go,” she stated. 

Here at PC, Dietel is a Psychology and Elementary Special Education major. She is involved in numerous clubs on campus, some of which include Dance Club, Her Campus, Providence Animal Welfare Club, Elementary Special Education Mentoring, and ECOPC. Dietel has danced since she was just two years old and has continued to pursue this passion into college. She has performed with the Dance Club since freshman year and is now going on her sixth semester of choreographing dances for their shows. 

Dietel is also the co-president of both the Providence chapter of Her Campus, which is an online magazine for and by women, and for PAW, the Providence Animal Welfare Club. It is clear she has a love for animals based on her two yorkies at home, Luke and Lily, and her extra spoiled Betta fish, Sashimi, that stays with her here on campus. 

Outside of clubs, Dietel works in two different psychology labs at PC. She is the lab manager in Dr. Lawrie’s Cultural and Positive Psychology Lab (CUPPS Lab). Here, she oversees a variety of studies and research assistants. Currently, she is studying parenting styles across different cultures. She also conducted an independent study last year with Dr. Lawrie where she utilized Positive Psychology Interventions in a local public school and measured well-being.

She is also a research assistant in Dr. Van Reet’s Imaginative Thought and Learning lab. Her duties in this lab include testing children, collecting and analyzing data, and completing literature reviews. 

During her senior year, she has been student teaching full time in her special ed practicum in East Providence. 

According to Dietel , “Special ed is hard work—harder than people think. I’ve learned to adapt, be flexible, and do everything I can to help my students.”

She noted that teaching young children can be highly unpredictable.“Whether they think our planet is Venus, our continent is Greenland, or our country is Florida, or, when I ask how they feel and I get the response ‘like bread on toast,’ I truly never know what to expect,” Sam said.

On top of all of these extracurriculars, she is also a part of several honor societies; Psi Chi, Phi Sigma Tau, and Dirigo. After graduation she plans to attend grad school and work towards starting a career as a Child Psychologist.

Outside of school life, she works several jobs. Following student teaching during the weekdays, she typically works in the afternoon as an HBTS Behavior Specialist and works one-on-one in children’s homes to provide them with therapeutic services and take them on community outings. 

“I’ve been working with kids since I was one myself. I always knew I’d make a career out of it,” Dietel stated.

Dietel also works as a tutor for the PC Tutoring Center, tutoring psychology and education courses as well as tutoring for the Praxis exam. She is a tutor for younger children as well, helping to reinforce what they are learning in school. Lastly, and arguably most importantly, Dietel is The Cowl Delivery Girl, going around to all the buildings on campus to deliver the newspaper.

Needless to say, there are very few things on campus in which Dietel is not involved, but she is truly making the most of her time here at PC and embracing the kindness of our community that she was drawn to when she first visited campus.