Alicia Garcia, from San Fernando Valley, is a third year Political Science major with a minor in International Studies. She first joined UC Irvine’s Women’s Lacrosse Club during her freshman year, hoping to improve as a player. By the end of her first season, she met talented friends who are as passionate about the sport as she is.
Before college, Garcia had played lacrosse for three years and was already coaching youth teams in her hometown. During her second year on the team at UCI, Garcia was selected to become one of four team captains and also became the game representative of the club. Her responsibilities included building the fall and winter game schedules and representing her team in case of any player safety issues during the season.
Today, because of all her dedication to the UCI team, Garcia was voted as president of the club for the 2015-2016 school year. Now, she mostly handles administrative work such as satisfying the Anteater Recreation Center regulations, handling paperwork, and organizing finances to maintain the club’s status at UCI. This year, she hopes to recruit enough players to add on a B team, which would make them one of the larger sports clubs on campus. Doing so would also allow an earned spot on the A team, which is more competitive and would give all players, new or returning, more opportunities to improve and to play the game.
Along with running her sports club program, she also coaches lacrosse for Corona Del Mar High School and hopes to share her knowledge on the sport with younger girls.
“I really like to teach my sport because it’s not that dominant here and I like to see it grow within the younger generation,” said Garcia. “I also just get so much satisfaction when I see a player improve and know that I helped impact that person.”
Not only is Garcia involved in the athletic community at UCI, but she also participates in the student government. She is currently an ASUCI organizing intern for the executive vice president. Her responsibilities are to assist with campaigns, rallies, and protests on campus. After her first conference in Sacramento as part of a lobbying course she took last year, she met people from all UCs who discussed statewide issues that effect all UC campuses and higher education in general.
“I got really angry and I wanted to do something about it so when I had the chance to interview for a position in ASUCI, I did,” said Garcia.
Garcia is a head of the Consent Campaign, which aims to have all UCI housing communities require consent training since most sexual assault cases occur within these communities.
Garcia showcases her leadership skills by running her own weekly discussions of 15 undecided/undeclared freshmen as part of the University Studies 1 course (Discussion Leader Program). In this course, students learn about campus resources and receive information about different majors and minors available at the university.
“The DL program taught me so much,” said Garcia. “It’s made me realize that I don’t have to limit myself to just school and that I should experience UCI as a whole. I wanted to be able to share that with undecided/undeclared freshmen because I was in their exact position just two years ago.”
UCI is a large campus and it can be difficult for students to adapt. Staying involved has made it easier for Garcia to find another home in Irvine, away from her hometown. Balancing her academics, campus involvements, work, and her sport has been a challenge, but Garcia has learned to become better with time management and prioritizing. She encourages all her students and teammates to get involved on campus and to take advantage of what UCI has to offer.
Congratulations on all your accomplishments, Alicia.
Her Campus hopes you and the UCI Women’s Lacrosse team have a wonderful season!