A Slippery Rock University student has eagerly seized opportunities to make her mark in SRU’s proud and vibrant community.
Jayden Williams, a senior strategic communication and media major with from Pittsburgh (Taylor Alderdice HS), went from describing herself as a very introverted upon arriving at SRU four years ago to now being an active leader involved in organizations like Queens, Black Action Society, the Frederick Douglass Institute, and as an employee of the Office of Student Engagement and Leadership.“
“Part of my job is to get video footage of student events which has let me see how many different organizations and people are on campus,” Williams said. “It’s really cool to see what different people are doing, and I’ve been to some events for clubs that I’d never even heart of!”
Williams also said that she got to know a lot of people on campus through the student organizations Queens and Black Action Society.
“Black Action Society and Queens are both places for minority students on campus to have a safe space,” Williams said. “We throw different events on campus, including alumni events where people get to connect with alums and with each other. I’m really looking forward to our Black History Month events.”
Queens is an organization for Black women on campus, allowing them to connect with one another and to form friendships through social events. Black Action Society seeks to educate others about the Black experience at SRU and to serve as a support system for Black students. As Williams said, these networks nurture connections between students of color, while also serving to bridge gaps of understanding between different campus communities. In Williams’ words, “Everyone is welcomed.”
Williams also spoke of her involvement with the Frederick Douglass Institute, a forward-thinking institution at SRU that seeks to advance awareness of and responses to issues pertaining to underserved and underrepresented students.
“Campus involvement is important because it helps us to ‘diversify’ ourselves,” Williams said. “It puts us in places we wouldn’t necessarily go or feel comfortable, and it builds that comfortability. It brings things out of people that they didn’t know they had. I really think it’s beneficial in college, especially for meeting people outside of your major.”
More information about Student Engagement and Leadership is available on the SRU website. More information about leadership opportunities at SRU is available on CORE, the University’s online platform for student organizations.
