This week Her Campus Brenau has chosen Amanda Lammers as our highlight profile! Some of you all might know her as the vice president of student services. Amanda Lammers is not only a huge help to all the women at Brenau; she is a mother of two beautiful sons Chase, 15 and Noel, 8, a friend, a counselor, and strong believer in equality. Through this interview you will quickly find out why Amanda Lammers was chosen to be our highlight profile.
Where are you from?
“I am from Cleveland, Ga which is about 30 minutes North from Gainesville”
Why do you like Brenau?
“I love so many things about Brenau. It’s hard to narrow it down. I love the fact that our student body is so supportive of one another.”
What made you want to be Vice President of student services?
“I am an ambitious person and I think a lot of times women tend to back off and apologize for their ambition but I learned that I am not going to do that. I realize that I can impact students at a greater level. I think it is very important that at a women’s college that a women is a women on the president’s cabinet.”
How is it being a mother to an African American Boy?
“No one has ever said anything ugly to my face. I know people give us looks and I know people talk about us behind our backs but you just come to understand that the love you have for your child is all that matters. His birth grandmother asked us, “How are you going to raise a black boy?” and I stumbled a little bit and said “ Ma’am I can sit here and make up all kinds of things and tell you how I have this plan and how I am going to this but that is not true I am going to love him. And that’s all I can do and that’s all I have done.”
What is the hardest part about raising an African American boy?
“The hardest part has to be the barber shop for me. His hair has been the biggest challenge. His curls are like the spring in an ink pen. But I have no doubt in my mind that Noel is my child.”
The theme for the school year is “Conversation, not confrontation.” What is the purpose of conversation not confrontation?
“I saw so many awful things happen this summer and we live in this social media world where people write things to each that they would probably never say to each other’s face and I believe that we are never going to change hearts and change minds if we come at people in a confrontational way. But if you can talk to someone and say this is my experience and that you can people see that this is really happening instead of attacking. I just don’t think that attack will get the change we need to see.”
Is this where you imagined yourself to be when you were younger?
“Yes and no. I do think I always saw myself working with college students but maybe not in this capacity. But there is no other job for me!”