Meet the New Community Assistants

The Insider reached out to students who will serve as community assistants (CAs) for the upcoming 2020-21 academic year to give them an opportunity to introduce themselves to the rest of the student body.
Any upcoming CA who would like to be featured in a future edition of The Insider can reach out to us at upginsider@outlook.com, subject: CA Feature.

 

Meet Joyce Lin!

Why did you want to become a CA? 
The main reason I wanted to become a CA was because I wanted to take part in aiding students, especially freshmen. I want to share my experiences with them, so hopefully they can learn from me as I can also learn from them. I want to help freshmen adjust to the new life in college, as I personally understand how different and drastic of a change it can be. I am also very excited to create programs for my residents. My biggest goal as a CA is to give my residents the reassurance that they are always welcome to come to me with any issue, as I wish to be a “safe place” for them to speak.

What are some of your responsibilities as a CA? 
A good chunk of my time will be heavily devoted to being a CA. I will be introducing myself to my residents, getting to know all the new faces, planning programs, scheduling one-on-one meetings, resolving any complications, distributing mail, completing duty hours, reinforcing the rules, and so on.

What are some of your hobbies? 
I am a very “artsy” person as I enjoy painting and making crafts. I also like to golf. I used to do archery, and now I would like to try out snowboarding. And, of course, I love to eat.

What is your favorite TV show? 
My favorite show is American Horror Story, because the actors and actresses are beyond amazing. The plots are incredible, and the plot twists never fail to amaze.

What is your favorite movie? 
My favorite movie is Good Boys, because it is so inappropriately hilarious. I would watch it on repeat, if I didn’t have any responsibilities, and I probably know every line from that movie.

 

Meet Kierin Sullivan!

Why did you want to become a CA?
When I was a first-year student at UPG, I didn’t know anyone, but my CA at the time, Jenna Aleski, was the first person to talk to me.  She made me feel welcome on campus and always invited me to events that were going on.  I want to do the same for returners and new students on this campus, who are coming in not knowing anyone, and provide a friendly face that is always willing to talk and let them know what is going on around campus. 

What are some of the responsibilities as a CA? 
Some of my responsibilities will include interacting with residents, getting to know them, and making sure that residents feel welcome, comfortable, and safe in their dorm. As well as directing students to other resources, such as the Learning Resources Center, if I am unable to help.

What are some of your hobbies? 
Some of my hobbies are drawing, hiking and cooking.

What is your favorite TV show? 
My favorite TV show is between The Office and Parks and Recreation. I enjoy anything that can make me laugh!

What is your favorite movie? 
It’s hard to pick one movie, I would say that I love many movies from every genre, but the one that sticks out in my mind at the moment would be Gladiator. It’s an action-packed film with an incredible story line and soundtrack. The film takes you through so many different emotions of sadness, happiness, and anger, even when re-watching it, I am just as invested in it as the first time.

 

Meet Stephen Taylor!

Why did you want to be a CA? 
I wanted to become a CA because even as a commuter, I was extremely involved in clubs and stayed on top of my academics, while working 4-5 days a week and driving back and forth 25 minutes to campus. Yet, despite how involved I have been this year, I wanted to do more. Therefore, I applied to be a CA to be a more active member of the Pitt-Greensburg community and to help students whenever they are in need of assistance in any way I can.

What are some of the responsibilities of a CA? 
Aside from maintaining good academic standing with the school, one of my biggest responsibilities is keeping the best interest of my residents in mind. That means keeping up to date with rules and procedures of resident life, consistently keeping them aware of all the ways they can get involved on campus, being there when they need someone to talk to, and let them know of all the other awesome things Pitt-Greensburg has to offer!

What are some of your hobbies? 
I love to go running as a way to destress and to keep myself in shape. I read as much as I can (currently in love with Margaret Atwood and Lianne Moriarty), I write screenplays (scripts) that focus on some sort of social injustice or sometimes something of a little light-hearted nature. And since I’m a Clinical/Counseling Psychology major, I’ve been reading what I can about updates in the field and it is truly fascinating!

What is your favorite TV show? 
“The Handmaid’s Tale” (which got me into Margaret Atwood) is my favorite show as of now. It is a truly remarkable story about gender inequality and it reflects some aspects of our current society, which is kind of frightening giving the context of the story.

What is your favorite movie? 
There is a tie between 2 movies with being my favorite. One is “The Wizard of Oz” because it was a big part of my childhood. Coming in second is “The Blind Side” because it is an outstanding true story portrayed by an extremely talented cast.