Who better to be our Campus Celebrity than our fearless leader herself, Sammy Martin! Sammy is a Junior majoring in English, Communications, Media, & Cultural Studies, and minoring in Music-Theater (and possibly Graphic Design!). Her involvement on campus skyrocketed this past year when, last semester, she found the time to pave the way for Emmanuel’s own Her Campus chapter! In between all her extracurriculars, she also finds the time to keep up with her personal style blog. So, let’s get to know the lovely lady herself, and find out more about her busy life:
HCE: Hi Sammy! You know how this goes. Let’s start with the basics. How did choose your major and minor?
SM: Initially, I planned to be a Music-Theater major and a Communications minor. I’ve always been really involved with theater and did a lot of shows throughout high school. But when I started a fashion and beauty blog the summer after my freshman year, I realized that writing and fashion journalism was my true passion. I made the switch and officially declared early in my sophomore year. I’m thinking of adding a minor in Graphic Design because I’m in three really cool design classes this semester!
HCE: What are you involved in on campus?
SM: My biggest area of involvement right now is, of course, Her Campus Emmanuel. I definitely devote most of my time to that. But this past summer, I worked as an Orientation Leader and that was a really amazing experience. I also currently give tours as an Admissions Ambassador, as well as participate in as many of the theatrical productions on campus as I can!
HCE: Any funny Orientation stories?
SM: Oh, there are many! The whole team grew so close and we definitely loved to joke around. I think one of my favorite funny moments was during the skit we put on to describe a day-in-the-life at Emmanuel. There’s a scene where we talk about HireSaints and all the different job opportunites available. My OL partner, Tim Furtado, would switch up one of his lines every time and would crack all of us up. Someone would say, “Whether you’re looking to be one of the latest student workers at the library…” and he’s supposed to say, “…or a new addition to the team at Regal Cinema, HireSaints has the job for you!”. He switched it to everything from “…or a window washer at Merck,” to “…or the next barista at Starbucks”. The funniest part is the students had no idea what so funny because it was their first time seeing it. It was hilarious!
HCE: How did you hear about Her Campus?
SM: I heard about Her Campus through a friend. She told me about an event they put on every October called College Fashion Week Boston. I decided to go and it was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced. It’s a free event where they give away lots of cool swag and put on a fashion show with the latest trends from a certain brand or store. Last year, the show featured looks from boohoo.com. There also create a bunch of different sponsor stations. Last year, there was a makeup station sponosored by BareMinerals, a mini hair salon by TRESemme, and a photobooth by Simon Premium Outlets that turned your pictures into a GIF. I had such a good time that it made me want to find out more ways to get involved with Her Campus.
HCE: What made you want to start a chapter?
SM: When I found out what a Her Campus chapter was and that I could start one at our school, I immediately jumped at the chance. Already having some blogging experience, I loved the idea that Emmanuel could have our own section of hercampus.com to write about whatever we wanted. Whether it be college life, fashion, relationships, or our favorite Friends quotes, we now have a space where really talented writers who go to Emmanuel can share their thoughts. I also love that we’re given so many amazing opportunities through Her Campus. I’ve been able to support different intiatives and go to a ton of events that I never would’ve been exposed to without starting a chapter.
HCE: Was it difficult launching our Emmanuel chapter?
SM: I wouldn’t describe it as difficult, but it was definitely a long process. I had to fill out an intial application with a cover letter, resume, writing sample, three on-campus publicity ideas, and the names of five people who supported the idea of me starting a chapter at Emmanuel. Then I was asked to complete something called a Management & Edit Test, where I answered some questions about leadership and management, wrote a potentional Blog piece, and edited a sample article. After that, I was asked to do a phone interview. I was then required to collect 100 email signatures from students who supported my effort to start a chapter. That was one of the most stressful parts, but I ended up going to the dining hall and collecting over 150 signatures in one lunch hour. Finally, I was given a launch date for our website and had to produce one full week of content to go up on April 14, 2015. Our launch happened without a hitch and here we are! All that’s left is applying for SGA recognition, which we are in the midst of as we speak.
HCE:What’s your favorite part about Her Campus?
SM: My favorite part is posting content. It’s one of the most stressful parts, too, because we are required to keep all five main sections (Features, Blogs, Cuties, Celebrities, and Snapshot) updated on a weekly basis. But reading through the incredible articles that the team writes inspires me to keep doing this. I’ve also been able to write a lot, as well as edit, which has been great. It’s so nice to have this kind of experience on my resume.
HCE: So, I follow your blog and love it! What inspired you to start a blog?
SM: Thank you! It actually started as a way to kill time. The summer after my freshman year, I was really struggling to find a job. I applied to, like, 10-15 different places with no luck. I was determined not to spend my entire summer sitting on the couch watching TV, so I started a tumblr blog. I take pictures of my outfits and write descriptions on why I wore it and where you can get each item (or similar pieces). I also feature different makeup, skincare, and haircare products that I like, as well as cool events that I go to. Having this blog has helped me in so many ways. I definitely don’t think I would’ve gotten my current summer job as a Sales Associate as Charlotte Russe, or even the opportunity to start a Her Campus chapter, without it!
HCE: Is it challenging to keep up with it?
SM: During the school year, yes. This year in particular, I’ve been slacking a bit. I absolutely love doing it, but when I look at how much homework I have, my job in Admissions, and everything that needs to get done for Her Campus, it unfortunately has to fall lower on my list of priorities. The other difficult thing is finding someone to take pictures for me. If I could photograph outfits myself, I would be able to post everyday. But I have to call on my friends and family to do it for me, and they’re not always the most willing or available subjects, as they have busy lives too! I want to give a major shoutout to Lindsay Kenney and my mom, though, for being my most frequent photographers. They’ve helped me so much! But anyway, long story short, I try my best to post when I can.
HCE: What’s the name of your blog, so all our readers can follow you?!
SM: I can always count on you to be my PR person, Liz! My blog is called Backyard Beauty and you can find it at backyardbeautyxo.tumblr.com. I also have a Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram associated with it, People can follow those too, if they want!
HCE: Do you have fashion-based career goals?
SM: I do! I would love to work for a major fashion magazine, whether it be writing or editing. My top three are Glamour, Seventeen, and InStyle. The dream is to move to New York City after graduation and try to get an internship somewhere that could get my foot in the door at one of these publications. Fingers crossed!
HCE: Any words of wisdom?
SM: Do what makes you happy because that’s all that really matters.