Ever since high school, I’ve been very involved in clubs and organizations throughout the community and school environment. I began in student council, and loved it so much I joined the Class of 2020’s executive board, serving as Class Treasurer. I had the responsibility of helping to plan and run events put on by my class, as well as managing and recording all of our spending and keeping track of our budget. This was an important job that lead to many opportunities to learn and grow as a person. I worked with a team to organize class picnics, a fondue night, and ran in elections for two years, before I found an opening for the Vice President of Finance.
Although being a Treasurer was a great experience, I knew I could do more as a member of the Undergraduate Association, so I ran in the election and was nominated to fill the position for the 2018-2019 school year. So far it has been a journey. Like every position and experience you may have in college, there’s always hiccups but in the end it’s a rewarding experience that I’m grateful to have.
Here at Nazareth, our executive board is made of a President, Vice President of Executive Operations, Vice President of Finance, Vice President of Campus Programming, Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion, and Vice President of Public Relations. Each member has its own branch of Nazareth’s UA to run, and together we form the face of the Undergraduate Association. As Vice President of Finance, I am in charge of being the middleman between clubs and organizations on campus and the Accounts Payable department for the college. I keep track of expenses on a bigger scale, make sure people get paid for club activities, create and approve budgets, lead training sessions for Treasurers, and lead the Finance Committee, which allows students and clubs to request funds for off campus conferences and trips. On top of all that, I work with the Execute Board to plan events and make sure the Undergraduate Association runs smoothly with the help of the Director of Student Activities and Leadership, Carey Backman.
This past semester, we worked tirelessly with the Campus Activities Board to plan a charity homecoming event called White Squirrel Day. We had tons of inflatables, caricatures, live music performances, food trucks, and the magician Kid Ace, as well as T-shirts and raffles as part of the event. We also connected with a local non-profit organization, Compeer Rochester, and raised $1000 to donate to their cause, which helps local youth, adults, and veterans with mental illness. If you want to learn more, check out my other blog post, “How a Nazareth Internship Changes the Game”.
Although serving on the Executive Board involves a lot of time and work, I highly recommend getting involved either as a Senator, Class Officer, or Council member with the Undergraduate Association, as it opens your eyes to all that goes on around Nazareth and allows you to connect and make friends with other members, in addition to giving you experience as a leader and member of the Nazareth Community.