By Nicole Via y Rada

WASHINGTON— Ryan Barto’s schedule is always penciled in. From his involvement both on and off campus, Barto rarely sits still – or alone.

“People say college students should have a routine for their lives,” he joked. “I definitely don’t live by that – there’s just too much on my plate.” 

Barto is the youngest elected president of the Federal City’s Rotary Club.

Now a junior majoring in political science with a marketing minor, Barto found a passion for community service before his time at American.

At a young age, Barto had to grow up fast. After his parents divorced, he faced their growing battle with addiction. Barto built a shell around himself – hiding the chatter and charm he’s known for today.

“I found mentorship through the clubs I joined in high school,” said Barto, who grew up in southern New Jersey. “My dad wasn’t my mentor in life. It was really important for me to find a mentorship away from that.”

He did.

Barto ran for student office throughout high school and continued the trend into college.

His freshman year, he sought executive positions in student government and the residence and housing life board. He was elected to both.

“Those casual conversations and those small moments getting to know people helped me build connections and friendships that elected me to these positions,” he said.

Once elected, Barto quickly realized that serving on councils was not the best way to enact change on campus. As a first-generation college student, he saw issues that no one else could. He realized that students like him needed something different. His role in student government led him to draft policy and create opportunities to help bridge that gap.

“If you look at the real change done on campus, it comes from student organizations,” he said. “It’s great, but I felt like I could do more.”

Barto started working with the Center for Advocacy and Student Equity, known as CASE, to help students and get a better sense of what was needed.

This passion for student advocacy translated into efforts to start his own club on campus. FLIP, the First Generation and Low-Income Project, works with college students to elevate student voices and promote inclusive programming. FLIP partnered with Barto and helped him charter a chapter on campus. He’s working on getting this club recognized by the university.

As a brother of Sigma Chi, Barto introduced a diversity and inclusion training plan for American’s Interfraternity Council.

“These programming efforts are necessary for fraternities on this campus and nationwide,” Travis Roberts, assistant director of Fraternity and Sorority Life at American, said. “It’ll take time to implement Ryan’s plan, but we’re working on it.”

Off campus, Barto’s role in community service was recognized on a larger scale. In February, he was elected president of the Rotary Club of Federal City, making him the youngest person in the world to hold this position.

“Ryan has always been active in the city he lives in,” said Navin Valliappan, Rotary’s club service director. “His appointment proves that there’s no limit to service.”

Barto joined the local Rotary Club in his freshman year of college. In high school, he had been involved with the Rotaract club, a branch of the Rotary. He attended national conferences with Rotarians around the world. Barto was enthralled by the global scope of service.

“I saw my potential to serve,” Barto said, his eyes lighting up at his initial memories of the Rotary. “I decided to commit to this, I’ve never been able to see myself in a role like this – until this came along.”

Valliappan has seen his fair share of dedicated community members, as a founding member of the local Rotary chapter. He attributes Barto’s success to his boyish charm and overall positivity.

Valliappan is not alone.

“A short, two-minute walk with Barto on campus easily turns into 10 minutes,” Alisa Patel, Barto’s girlfriend, joked. “He gets stopped so often and talks to so many people that I call him the mayor.”

His constant laughter and friendly nature sometimes gets him in trouble.

“Whenever my friends and I walk into the library, after about 10 minutes of talking, we’ll look around and realize that everyone left,” Barto said, laughing.

Barto’s signature smile always greets the sisters of Alpha Xi Delta, after being named the “Xi Man of the year” – for the second time.

“Having Ryan helped us expand out of our bubble and be more present on campus,” said Fiona Steiwer, president of Alpha Xi Delta, said. “He’s a great guy to know.”

With service and school, Ryan finds himself always surrounded by friends.

“Everyone knows who Ryan is when he walks into a room,” Valliappan said. “And if they don’t, they will.”