Meet this week’s Campus Celebrity, Kallie Nealis! Kallie is a third year member and Vice President of the WVU Dance Team, is involved with several organizations on campus, and is a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. Kallie is kind, fun-loving and has a huge heart, which made her the perfect candidate for her internship at the Make-A-Wish Foundation this summer. Although she has lived in six states throughout her lifetime, Kallie considers Bridgeport, WV her hometown, as she has lived there for the past seven years.
Q: When did you start dancing?
A: When I was six years old, I started dancing in Champaign, Illinois, and began competing by the age of eight. I found my first love of performing through dancing, and never wanted to stop.
Q: Can you tell me about what it’s like to be a member of the WVU Dance Team?
A: Being a part of the team this year has brought me nothing but happiness! Some of our performances include every men’s & women’s basketball game, a few volleyball games, and one of my favorites, the homecoming parade. Besides cheering on the mountaineers, we also put on children’s dance camps and perform community service throughout the area to give back to our college town. We also train throughout the entire year to compete at National Dance Alliance Nationals in Daytona Beach, Florida against Division 1 Dance Teams from all over the United States. This year we were blessed to receive a talented team of hardworking, kind women, and there is no one else I would want to stand beside to represent West Virginia University.
Q. What is your favorite thing about being on dance team?
A: There’s nothing like being on the court during pregame of a basketball game. As the lights dim and the blue and gold strobe lights begin to shine around the stadium, it’s impossible to not get butterflies in your stomach or grin from ear to ear. Performing to Hail West as the Pep Band plays next to us and waving at my parents in the stands who never miss a game is a feeling that never grows old or less exciting. I would do it for the rest of my life if I could.
Q. Tell me about your internship at Make-A-Wish; what was your favorite part?
A: Interning with Make-A-Wish this summer was one of the best internships I could ask for. Throughout the summer, I worked in the office helping with the behind the scenes for Wishes and events. Although I really did enjoy getting to help write Wish Stories about some of the children, create fun itineraries, or help with writing thank you notes, my favorite thing I got to do was go on an actual Wish where I got to dress up as the child’s favorite Disney Princess, Elsa. There was nothing more special than getting to experience the excitement and happiness of the child and their family as we got to help their Wish come true. Also, I enjoyed being Stella, the Make-A-Wish Star, for the day at the Morgantown Kid’s Day this past summer. I could have hugged and high-fived those little ones all day!
Q: How do you balance school, dance team, a sorority and all of your other commitments?
A: Although my studies always come first, I find that if I time manage correctly, try to relax, and do my best to give my all in all three of those categories, that there is no reason why I can’t enjoy doing all of the things I love to do in college. I am more than grateful than to be able to say that I am a student at WVU, a part of Greek Life, and the Dance Team, and will always do my best to represent all three in the best light and most positive way possible. It can get a bit stressful at times, but the memories I have created in general outshine any of those brief moments of stress.
Q: What is the best thing about being a Mountaineer?
A: Being a Mountaineer is the greatest honor I will ever take with me after I graduate West Virginia University and is something I always wanted to be. After growing up hearing the stories told by my dad, an alum, of his greatest moments during his time here, having my home decorated in Gold & Blue no matter what state we lived in, wearing my WVU cheerleading uniform whenever I could as a little girl, and seeing the dedication that my father has always had for our university, there was never a doubt in my mind that this is where I wanted to spend my college years. Being able to call yourself a Mountaineer isn’t just about being a student attending WVU, but living for the traditions such as singing Country Roads at sporting events or hearing the musket fire at the end of a game, and representing a state with some of the most caring people in the nation. John Denver’s lyrics couldn’t be more true, because it genuinely is the “place I belong,” and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
Q. What do you hope to accomplish from your time at WVU?
A: Throughout the rest of my time here at WVU, my goal is to become more involved in student organizations such as PRSSA, Food Recovery Network, and I Am That Girl. But most of all, I just want to make my parents and family proud as a future WVU Alum, and give my all during the time I am grateful to have as a student here. Hopefully someday I will be able to tell my stories about some of my favorite memories and special moments at WVU like my dad did for me, and inspire future students to attend this University as well because I know they won’t regret it.
Q: What are your plans for your future?
A: After graduation, I hope to attend grad school to obtain a Master’s Degree or Ph.D. in whatever is calling my name, whether it be in Marketing, Journalism, or maybe even Human Resources. Further down the road, my ultimate goal is to start my own Non-Profit or continue volunteering for those organizations that I hold near and dear, continue performing whether it be for an athletic team or dance company, teach dance, and have my own happy family. As long as I’m doing something I love, I’ll be happy.