Communities
Bobby Drozek '01
Providing mental health counseling to homeless veterans
What does 18th and 19th century German Idealism have in common with the challenges of homeless veterans today? Everything, says Bobby, who focused on German philosophy at Marlboro and now works as a psychotherapist for veterans facing a wide range of difficulties, from substance abuse to schizophrenia, at a veterans hospital in Bedford, Massachusetts.
"Wrestling with the fundamental nature of human suffering and well-being has served as the theoretical foundation for my work in mental health, and it continues to inform my practical efforts to help my clients on a daily basis," says Bobby.
Bobby was enrolled in one of the top master's programs in philosophy, at Tufts University, when he had a crisis of conscience. He felt insulated from the "real world" and concerned that the work that he was doing was not directly promoting people's well-being. He left school and began working as a mental health counselor at McLean Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts.
"In the span of just a few months, I had gone from feeling isolated from the real world to feeling profoundly embedded in the world, surrounded by the joys and sufferings of real people and in a position to actually make a difference in their lives," says Bobby.
Bobby got his master's in social work at Boston College, but still draws heavily on the philosophical musings he began at Marlboro. "As part of the Marlboro College community, I learned the importance of close relationships, and I learned about the power of these relationships to take me beyond myself and to recognize the viewpoints of others."