If you know Casey, you already know she’s the sweetest person you’ll ever meet and always has a smile on her face. What you may not know is that next year, she’s going to be the Vice President of Her Campus Pitt! We are so excited to see all that she does with this organization. Learn a little more about her and what her goals are for the next year.
Year: Sophomore
Major: Nonfiction Writing and Psychology
Hometown: Newtown, Pennsylvania
Her Campus: What are some things you’re involved in on campus?
Casey Schmauder: I write for Her Campus and for The Pitt News, so I get to try out both magazine and newspaper-style writing. I’ve also held an internship this semester with the National Blood Clot Alliance, so I’ve been writing parts of their newsletters and doing some research into student awareness of blood clots.
HC: How did you first get involved with HC Pitt?
CS: When I got to Pitt, I was taking biology and math courses. I had placed out of Seminar in Comp with AP credits, and it was hitting me that if I continued with bio, I would never take a writing course in my four years at Pitt. So, walking through the activities fair freshman year, I was desperate to find someone who would let me write for them, and I found my way to the HC table. I wound up loving my experiences so much that I even changed my major.
HC: What is your favorite thing about the organization?
CS: I love that this organization allows anyone to explore their passions and interests through writing. There are really no topics that we shy away from, each of our writers writes very different pieces in very different voices, and we take people at different places on their writing path.
HC: What are you most excited to accomplish as Vice President? What is your biggest goal?
CS: I want everyone in the club to get really strong feedback on their work. I’ve grown as a writer not necessarily because of the classes I’ve taken but because of the people who have edited my work and my peers whose work I’ve read. That’s why most writing classes are just based around workshopping each other’s pieces. I want people to feel like they do Her Campus for fun but also really get something productive out of being a member, too.
HC: As you approach next year, what is some advice you have for freshmen looking back?
CS: Somehow, do what you love. I really wouldn’t have enjoyed my college experience if I wasn’t writing. I love to write. So, if you can, get involved in a club or around the city doing something you’re really passionate about.
HC: What are some of your favorite things to do in Pittsburgh? Favorite thing about Pitt?
CS: I love Pirates games, partly because of the game and partly because of the views of our city. I also love Pamela’s. I was going to say I love trying new restaurants, but really I just want to get home fries at Pam’s all the time. I’m gonna miss those back home.
HC: Any fun summer plans?!
CS: I am going to be writing for Youth Nation in Dublin, Ireland! Finally I can say something about my summer other than I’m working at Applebee’s or going to the beach. I am going to be spending three months abroad, living in an apartment on an Irish college campus, and hopefully visiting one of my best friends who lives in Germany. It’s honestly my dream summer.
HC: What’s a random fun fact about yourself?
CS: I don’t eat condiments. Ketchup/mustard/relish/ranch…they all freak me out.
Image Credit: Images provided by Casey.