New and old members of the Greek Executive Board at the Northeast Greek Leadership Association
Photo courtesy of Greek Senate
Just as the semester is ending a new beginning for the Greek Executive Board is starting. There are several new members of the Greek Executive Board for the academic year of 2016 through 2017. From president to treasurer, look below to see who is new and who is coming back:
Orlando Taylor: Currently a junior majoring in finance and minoring in marketing, Taylor will be entering his senior year of college as he takes on the president position of the Greek Executive Board. He is a part of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated and has much to offer to the Greek community as president. He comments, “I have a lot of goals [as president] but some of my main goals are to increase Greek [l]ife members percentage, and give more awareness of all our fantastic Greek [o]rganizations on campus.” As President of Greek Executive Board he is not just the president of the executive board but the entire Kean University Greek community. Taylor comments that as president he will “like to manage multiple organizations other than my own.”
Lucas Hernandez: Hernandez will be taking the position Vice President of Public Relations. He is a member of the fraternity Nu Sigma Phi, majoring in public relations and minoring in marketing and is expected to graduate in spring of 2018. “I hope to continue to grow my leadership skills [as well as my] skills in the public relations field,” comments Hernandez. He wishes to also “communicate better with different organizations, which will help me better broaden my Greek life knowledge.” As Vice President of Public Relations, Hernandez wishes to promote to the community of “Kean University that Greek [l]ife is a positive and fulfilling experience by [using] different tools to reach…the student population. I believe that Greek [l]ife at Kean [University] does many great things for students, the campus and the surrounding community; and it’s only fair that they get recognized for all the good deeds done.”
Hernandez is very committed to what he wants to get done, as well as excited. He explains how happy he is to be in the position of Vice President of Public Relations, and only for himself but for the executive board and Kean University. He continues to explain that “taking the extra step and grabbing an opportunity that comes your way is extremely important to opening doors and connections for the future. With this new leadership position, I hope to continue to be a great representative of my fraternity and Greek [S]enate…being a face on this campus is something I take pride in.”
Ashley Buchanan: In the upcoming year, Buchanan—who will take on the position Vice President of Programming—will be a senior double majoring in psychology and psychiatric rehabilitation and minoring in health. She is the President of the sorority Omega Sigma Psi and is someone who loves to be innovative and interacting with others, “especially if it means it will help another person in some shape or form,” she comments. Buchanan is also a part of the Leadership Institute.
“I am honored to have the privilege to serve as Vice President of Programing for Greek [Executive Board],” Buchanan comments. As Vice President of Programming she will be creating all the activities and programs sponsored by the Greek Executive Board. Such events includeMeet the Greeks,Greek Olympics andGreek Week. “My main goal and objective for the 2016-2017 year is placing an emphasis on Greek [u]nity. I will be in the process of creating programs that exemplify the effectiveness of different organizations coming together for a greater purpose,” says Buchanan. “I am excited to be a part of this years’ executive board and cannot wait to see how this journey will shape me into becoming a better leader.”
Nina Townsend: Townsend will be the Vice President of Rush and New Member Development for the academic year of 2016 through 2017. She will be a junior at the start of her term and is majoring in K-6 elementary education. She is a part of the sorority Mu Sigma Upsilon Incorporated. Since she will be a part of the Greek Executive Board, she “hopes to [reach out] to many young individuals and help them make the right choices,” Townsend comments. As the Vice President of Rush and New Member Development her position enables her to guide new members into Greek life as well as “help them contribute to the community. I also encourage all organizations to network and work together,” Says Townsend.
Jasleen Molina: Molina is a returning member to the Greek Executive Board. Her position is the Vice President of Standards and Conduct. She is currently a junior majoring in biology and is a part of the women’s fraternity Theta Phi Alpha. “Being that this is my second year with the same position, I would like to apply all that I have learned from going to the National Greek Life Association [NGLA] [C]onference twice and just having the experience and knowledge into my second term,” Molina comments. As Vice President of Standards and Conduct, she is responsible for a numerous of things like issuing penalties and punishments against a Greek organization, as well as enforcing the constitution and bylaws of the Greek Senate. Molina also comments that she would like “to accomplish Greek unity” during her last year at Kean University.
Terrance Somesla-Mccornell: Somesla-Mccornell will be going into his second term as Vice President of Multicultural Affairs and Community Service this coming fall. He is a senior majoring in Pre-K through 12 special education with a concentration of History. He is a part of the fraternity Nu Delta Pi. As a part of the Greek Executive Board, he hopes to “gain more leadership qualities that I can use for my future classroom as a teacher." He also comments that he “will be talking with many people about creating programs and community service projects so it will [be a] good experience with networking and collaborating.” As Vice President of Multicultural Affairs and Community Service, Somesla-Mccornell creates community service projects, as well as works with the Greek organizations to create events and activities for philanthropy ideas. He would like to host evets like food bank drives, campus and park clean ups and more. To end his final year on the Greek Executive Board out with a bang, Somesla-Mccornell comments that he would like “to do something each month on the different awareness[e]s for any groups not just Greek life but all of Kean [s]tudent body to join in. For example, find different walks like Stride for Mental Illness or Breast Cancer walk.”
Kyle Wiggins: Wiggins is the new Treasurer for the Greek Executive Board for the 2016–2017 academic year. He is a senior majoring in public relations and is a part of the fraternity Tau Kappa Epsilon. As Treasurer, Wiggins will focus on the financial obligations of the Greek organizations. “I hope that I can help every Greek organization with any financial problems,” Wiggins comments. He hopes to help whoever he can before he graduates because, as he says, “I was told to leave something better than I found it.”
Paola Duran: Duran is a junior majoring in physical education and health. She is a part of the sorority Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. and is the Secretary on the Greek Executive Board. She comments that she has gained a variety of skills when she became a part of Greek life and hopes to gain even more. “What I hope to get out of my experience as part of the Greek Executive Board is growth,” comments Duran, “there is always room for improvement.” As Secretary, Duran is responsible for a numerous of things like creating agendas, meetings and more. “I have some really big shoes to fill. Jordan [Cahill, the current secretary] is an ideal person for the job. By shadowing her I will be able to meet the needs of what the Greek community needs and hopefully exceed expectations,” she says. Duran is a very dedicated sister to her sorority and doesn’t regret any bit of becoming a part of the Greek life at Kean University. She comments how she is “looking forward to…[the] new Executive Board and create some new memories and foundations. As an Executive Board we want to unify the different sororities and fraternities more as opposed to favoring one particular council. This is an item on our checklist that we will very much achieve.”
