At seventeen Neah Lorton graduated from high school with her Associate’s degrees. “It was challenging figuring out how to manage my own time and navigate college, especially since I tried to do AP classes in high school along with community college, but it was super fulfilling. I think it really prepared me to go to a 4 year college, and it made things much more affordable since my high school paid for my AA. Although it was stressful, I’m so glad I did it”
Neah can be seen walking across campus with fun hair colors (all of which have looked amazing) and in cute sweaters. She hails from Olympia, Washington, and decided to come out to New York for a new experience. “The nature is beautiful out there, but there aren’t many opportunities outside of Seattle or its surrounding areas, so I also thought there would be more opportunities out here.”
Neah is now a senior here at Manhattanville majoring in Sociology and Communications. “I’ve always loved sociology’s ability to force its students to open their eyes to all the different things impacting them. I love the awareness sociology brings, as well as the inspiration to create change. Sociology has been a huge catalyst in my life and it’s really made me want to focus my life on helping people. Communications I’ve always thought was interesting too, especially with the technological advances of recent decades and how much of our interactions are online. I guess I just really like analyzing”
If being a double major didn’t keep her busy enough, Neah also founded Manhattanville’s Veggie Club. “I started the veggie club to educate our campus about animal rights and environmentalism, as well as vegan and vegetarian diets. I also wanted to connect with the rest of the vegan/vegetarian community on campus.” Starting a new club on campus can be time consuming and full of ludacris paperwork, but Neah took it like a champ. “It wasn’t too terrible getting the club started, but it was a bit confusing to figure out. I actually didn’t know we had a club until first semester of this year when they told me to get a table for club fair. I’d say the hardest part so far has been setting a foundation for the club and figuring out the logistics of creating events.” Besides the Veggie Club, Neah used to participate in the Manhattanville Sound last semester.
How does a student so busy succeed? With the help of friends and professors. “Professor Murray from CAM and Professors Cherry and Williford from the sociology department have really helped me during my time at Manhattanville, and I appreciate all the hard work they put in for their students. My professors are my favorite part of mville!”
Post-Manhattanville, Neah is looking to go graduate school, and is looking to do sociological research or social work. “I just want to help people, essentially.”
If you run into Neah, and aren’t sure what to talk to her about, here are some fun conversation starters!
Favorite Animal: Brown Bear
Favorite Season: Autumn
Favorite TV Show: 6 Feet Under
Make sure to say hi before she graduates in May. “I’ll definitely miss Manhattanville, since it’s such a tight-knit community. I’ll also miss being a pseudo adult instead of a Pays-Her-Own-Bills adult”