Baseball player's nonprofit major is personal.

• Position: Athletics

Graduate student Adam Barry is a new face on the baseball diamond this season for High Point, joining the Panthers for his last year of eligibility after earning a degree in sociology from Cal State-Northridge in 2012. While he is excited to help HPU in its quest for a Big South Championship, the team and the coaches were not the only reasons he chose to play his last season of college baseball at HPU. Barry was also drawn to the university's graduate program in nonprofit management, a subject in which Barry has a personal connection.

"My parents raised me and my siblings to always try and help other people who are less fortunate," says Barry. "When I found out about High Point University and its nonprofit master's program, I was really interested in coming here for my last year of eligibility."

Barry grew up in a family that has taken part in a great deal of nonprofit work throughout his life. His family has worked with several organizations including one called Build a Miracle, operated by his aunt and uncle. The organization is based in southern California, and the people involved travel to Mexico to build houses for underprivileged families.

"My aunt and uncle have operated Build a Miracle as a nonprofit since 2001," says Barry. "Every four to six weeks we go down with anywhere from 20 to 100 people. It is very rewarding to help these families go from small shacks to houses where the parents and the kids have their own rooms. The connections and relationships you can build doing work with groups like that are amazing."

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The Barry family's charitable work also led to an addition to the family when they welcomed Tshilidzi Nephawe (nicknamed Chili) into their home. Nephawe had come from South Africa to live in the United States and attend Stoneridge Prep; a basketball prep school in Simi Valley, Calif. At first, he lived with six other students in a small two bedroom apartment. After meeting the Barry family, Nephawe began to spend more and more time with them before eventually moving in about four years ago. Nephawe is now a junior at New Mexico State where he plays for the Aggies' men's basketball team.

"As a...