Name: Katie Quinn
Hometown: Minneapolis, MN
Year: Senior
Major: Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS)
Minors: Speech Communication, Women and Gender Studies
HC: What are your career aspirations?
KQ: I’m going on to grad school for school counseling. That’s the plan, but my long-term goal is to be some type of motivational speaker!
HC: How are you involved on campus at UW-Stout?
KQ: I work in the housing office and do a few things for them. So if you get a package, I’m the lady who gives it to you! I’m also a part of the Ally Club and I’m joining Students Against Sexual Assault (SASA) this year too.
HC: What is the Ally Club all about?
KQ: Ally Club is more of a broad social justice club. Basically they do volunteering, and they try to focus on one big issue per year – things like stereotypes and sexism. I’m the student advisor for that right now.
HC: Do you have a favorite memory at Stout?
KQ: I don’t know if it’s my favorite, but it’s probably one of my favorites – it’s the first one I think of and I think it’s what a few people know me from. I did a speech my sophomore year to all of the incoming students about pooping my pants. That’s one of my biggest memories, because that’s also so close to what I want to be doing with my life, like public speaking. So that was pretty fun!
HC: Can you tell us one thing you are most proud of?
KQ: This might sound very small, but right now I’m working on being really positive, and I feel like I’m nailing it! I’m writing down three positive things that happen each day and that’s really helped. So, I’m very proud that I’ve stuck with that!
HC: What is one thing that you hope to happen in your lifetime pertaining to global change?
KQ: That’s a tough one! But I would love to see a shift to having all body types being celebrated in the media. Not just the extremes, but also the people with “flaws” and the people in the middle. Basically, I would like to see advertising be more inclusive.
HC: If you could meet one famous person (dead or alive) who would it be?
KQ: I’d love to meet Carol Burnett. She’s kind of an old-school comedian, and she’s one of the more prominent female comedians. She’s been an idol of mine – she does a lot of skit-based comedy and I’m super into that. I think she’s still alive too, so I have a chance!
HC: What is one message you’d like to share that you think every person should hear?
KQ: It sounds like a dumb quote but, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” Like, if you don’t change something, why would you expect something else to change? If you’re waiting for a change in your life and you haven’t made an effort to change, then why would you expect something different?
HC: Is there a club on campus that you wish you had time for, but just don’t?
KQ: Actually, yeah! My dream is to be a hip hop dancer so I wish I had time to be in Dance Ensemble! I mean, it’s not actually my dream, but I would love to be an amazing hip hop dancer.
HC: What is one thing that people don’t know about you?
KQ: I feel like people expect me to be really happy a lot of the time, and that’s not always the case. So it’s really interesting how people perceive me just on the outside, because I’m not always this happy, energetic person, even though that’s sometimes what I portray a lot. That’s what everyone wants to be, but obviously I’m a human being so it’s not always easy!
Katie’s Favorites!
Movie: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
TV Show: Stranger Things
Celebrity Crush: Ezra Miller
College Course: Interpersonal Effectiveness – it’s a dang good class! It taught me how to be a good person, honestly. It taught me how to not be a baby!
Song: Am I a loser for saying this? It’s Must Get Out by Maroon 5. Weirdly, that’s the song that’s always been my favorite!
Place on Campus: I shouldn’t tell people my secret, but my favorite place is the funky bathroom in Price Commons. I honestly hang out in there, it has such a good vibe.
Hobbies: Comedy, teaching myself the ukulele, and I watch a lot of hip hop dance videos. So many, it’s unreal. Like all the time.