Mirena Medina has been hired this semester as the new Assistant Director to Student Life and the new RHD to Rita Bole. Her job here is to work as the SGA and CAB advisor and oversee the other campus clubs and activities.
Not only is Medina new to the Lyndon campus, but she is new to Vermont as a whole. She grew up in a middle-class suburb in Cherryhill, New Jersey. She went to Stoney Brook University in Long Island and graduated last May. In college, she majored in human evolution biology and minored in anthropology and leadership.
Medina was in many clubs in college, was a student-athlete, and worked five jobs. She was an RA for three years, was a peer mentor, worked in research, and did an internship with her university’s department on drugs and alcohol. In this internship, she worked helping to spread awareness of drug abuse and prevention.
This past summer she worked at the summer camp that she used to go to, and for the past three months, she has been working as an outdoor educator. “Groups of kids would come in and I would teach them how to take care of animals and it was a lovely time.”
Even though Medina may not be doing work that aligns with her major at the moment, she is happy to be where she is. She told The Critic, “I like to think that what I got out of college, extracurricular, got me to where I am a lot more than my anthropology degree.” Medina likes experimenting with her career and is happy to be having new experiences.
Medina’s plan was not originally Vermont. After her summer work, she wanted to go somewhere new. She first applied for a job with a big tech company in Austin, Texas. However, throughout the interview process, she did not feel prioritized and decided to try somewhere else. She applied for a job in Connecticut and here in Vermont. “I was talking to my mom after my job interviews, and she said, ‘you just seem happier talking about Vermont,’ so I came here,” she said.
Medina is getting used to the culture here at Lyndon. She is used to a large college close to the city, whereas NVU is small and in the mountains. She enjoys seeing a tight-knit campus where everyone knows each other and says she feels welcome here. “People I have interacted with have all been genuinely nice.”
She feels that she fits in well here with the students. Since she is close in age, Medina feels that she can understand where students are coming from. She hopes to be a safe space for students–a person students can come to when they are in need–and she hopes to be an ally to the LGBTQ+ community on campus.
“I don’t want to bring an agenda of what I am used to, instead I hope to learn what is best for the students here and their needs.” – Mirena Medina
Medina has a lot that she wants to accomplish here at Lyndon. Her main goal is to have more structure between SGA, CAB, and other clubs. “There should be one place where all clubs can communicate what events they are planning so that there is not as much confusion.” Right now, she feels that there is a major lack of communication between clubs.
She knows that each club has its own needs and has been setting up meetings with executive boards to get to know each of them. Medina has also been meeting with each individual executive board member of CAB and SGA.
Medina wants to push to have more events that cater to more people. “Clubs should be supporting clubs in order to relieve more stress and get more done,” she said.