BYU has a long-standing reputation as a school based on service.
As a main element of its mission, the motto, “Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve” is a reminder to its students what the purpose of a BYU education and college experiences are.
There are numerous ways for students to get involved in serving and engaging with the community. The Center for Service and Learning, more commonly known as Y-Serve, is a program structured to help students commit to “lifelong learning and service” through providing opportunities to serve in different ways in the local area.
“If you clearly look at the mission and aims of this university, you find service interlaced everywhere,” Y-Serve Director Chris Crippen said.
Y-Serve has a variety of about 70 service programs, all of which have a different purpose to assist specific communities. Hundreds of students volunteer during every semester, either as casual helping hands or as program directors.
Among those volunteers is Victoria Schreiber, a swimmer who has balanced athletic success with years of service.
Schreiber, a senior from Brighton, Mich., has been making waves for BYU swimming since her freshman year, while also changing the lives of children through volunteering at Y-Serve.
“Service just helps me put aside my own needs to bless the lives of others,” Schreiber said, “It has just helped me to keep things in perspective.”
Schreiber grew up understanding the importance of service and recognizing her ability to make a positive impact on others' lives.
“I remember going to soup kitchens on Christmas and Thanksgiving Day, helping out at refugee centers in Detroit. So that’s something I wanted to continue throughout college and just be able to give back to the community," she said.
Currently, Schreiber serves as a lead program director for the program Kids on the Move, an organization that dedicates itself to assisting families that have children with special needs in various ways that help the kids to succeed and live their best lives.
Through Y-Serve, Schreiber directs events where student volunteers are able to play with young children who have disabilities. According to Schreiber, the program benefits everyone involved. It gives the kids time to have some physical exercise and fun, the parents to have a break, and the volunteers to see the impact they can make on these kids’ lives.
“I fell in love after my first visit there. I was able to build such a sweet relationship with the kids there, and I just fell in love with the program and what they do to help the community,” she said.
After starting as a volunteer, Schreiber became a lead program director, a role she has to balance while also being a student-athlete. However, she finds a way to make time in her busy schedule to serve and be as involved in the program as possible.
When discussing how being an athlete influences the other priorities in her life, she said, “I think the discipline and teamwork from athletics definitely translates to my ability to work towards a common goal and serve others.”
Crippen mentioned how impressed he has been over the years with Schreiber’s dedication to serving.
“There is a great demand on their time, but she has shown and proven herself to be so diligent and so balanced. I see that consistency, and I think that’s where the success is," he said.
As an athlete, Schreiber competes in freestyle events, making it into the Big 12 second team in the 500-yard free for 2025 and the 1,600-yard free in 2024.
At BYU, she ranks in the top 10 of all time in freestyle and is a part of the school record-breaking 800-yard free relay performances, both in 2024 and 2025. Most recently, she earned a spot at 15th overall in the 1,650-yard freestyle at an eight-school meet.
It is obvious that both being a student-athlete and a service director are aspects of Schreiber’s life that she excels in, and being at BYU has been a major factor. She stated that what BYU stands for was a large reason she came to compete, and Y-Serve has been an opportunity to do even more as a student.
Schreiber mentioned that she has been able to get her teammates to volunteer as well and that she makes a constant effort to talk to others on campus about service opportunities.
“It's just been fun to see the impact that you can make by just sharing it in conversations and bringing that love of service to everyone,” she said.
Both swimming and service for Schreiber have been influenced by the atmosphere of the university, incorporating the importance of personal dedication from a religious perspective.
“Being religious just helps me find so much more meaning in service because it helps me to grow closer to Jesus Christ," Schreiber said. "He’s the ultimate amazing example of what service looks like and what it’s like to love everyone.”
Crippen, as a director, has seen many students become involved in service and recognize it as an essential part of their lives.
“This is a pillar principle in this campus,” he said, “so we will use our gifts and talents and blessings and privileges to serve others.”
Y-Serve gives every student a meaningful experience to serve while they are in college, through all different types of programs and opportunities.
Sariah Francis, a vice president of Y-Serve’s student council, discussed the importance of having the program on campus, saying, “I think that overall, our goal is to always just get awareness out that Y-Serve is available and that there is literally something for everyone there.”
Schreiber has dedicated herself to being a top-performing athlete for BYU while also leading an effort towards one of the major principles of the university. Her work in both areas doesn’t go unnoticed as she continues to put in her time and energy until she graduates in April of 2026.
When describing Schreiber and her work, Crippen said, “It is always with a pleasantry too, she is always just so beautifully kind about it, you don’t see her stressed, you don’t see her rattled. I think that is another athletic advantage too, is handling things under pressure.”
Y-Serve creates opportunities for all BYU students to serve their community and recognize the needs of others, and Schreiber reflects the type of person and disciple of Christ that the university hopes all its students become.