Entering the UWM Political Ring

Last night was the montly Society of Women Engineers meeting, and I GOT ELECTED TO SERVE AS VICE PRESIDENT OF SWE NEXT YEAR!!!!

I am pleased. All this year, I've been working diligently as the Event/Fundraiser Coordinator, watching Holly out of the corner of my eye and wishing I had her position. After using her as my guinea pig, I feel I have a silent insider track of what to expect. And I can handle it!! This position is prestigious and will help me keep tabs on a student org that I have really come to take under my wing.

I plan to serve SWE thoroughly, bringing us positive representation in the College of Engineering. I will continue on my platform to increase recruitment efforts and member retainment, as well as arranging events that force SWE's name to get out there and get circulated, so that the rest of the college's students hear about us and support us as well. I am eager to get the paperwork handed in, write polite letters to companies seeking grants for SWE, attending SA senate meetings, and helping work on the student org offices. I am excited to show my talents that I earned with my Honors Degree, which will set me above the other engineering students that are only capable of talking in numbers. I'm all about repuation and representation, and I'm pushing for a squeaky-clean, progressive year for SWE. :)

I swear to God that this past year I've been so plugged into the College of Engineering, that there are more people here that know my life story whereas I don't even know their favorite color. I'm lucky if they've told me their first names...I can't set foot into a hallway, elevator, or computer lab without someone coming up to me asking about help on homework in one of our classes, about a tour they heard about, about my cell phone fundraiser I installed for the college, the Volkswagen project, my new student org (APE), or about guys being members of SWE in general (we have had male members in the past, by the way!).

And I love it. I love the rush. I love being on campus every day now for 7:30 AM with my new schedule of coming in with my roomie Megan, and working nonstop until I finally get to go back to the apartment for 9:45 PM every night, just to go to bed after doing five hours of homework, get up, and do it all over again.



Busy? Hoa yeah.




I love all the familiar faces, knowing the building like the back of my hand, joking around with all the faculty, staff, and my buddies that study up in 371 every day, always craning their necks to see if it is me coming every time they hear footsteps. :)

They've been so supportive of me with my frustrations with the rape incident here, with my frustrations about noticing a dynamic in my friendships with people from back home, and also in sharing my excitement for the things I am getting into instead of trying to turn it back onto themselves and their own lives. It's nice to be recognized for once. Just like what you'd imagine in a movie of your life, where in the end you furiously storm out, showing people the inner force they've been bullying the whole time.

I've got a great group of friends that I can crack up laughing one minute, and keep them on the edge of their seats with one of my stories, the next.

This is what college should be about! :)