Emerson has always been a chapter that likes to take risks, so emailing the chapter network to spotlight different Her Campus Chapters at other schools was no different. One of the schools that we decided to introduce to you is the chapter at Hofstra, located in Long Island, NY. When we asked the CCs what made their chapter unique, CC Madison Mento stated that “Hofstra is unique because it is a huge school with a small-school feel. There are over 15,000 undergrad and grad students here at Hofstra, but you’re never going to go a day without seeing someone you know.” She went on to explain that hofstra has a community culture unlike most other places, and they love every moment of being a part of that community. HC Hofstra was founded in the Spring of 2010, and are now a team of about 60 members.
The chapter has a seven-person social media team, five-person marketing and events team, and a 45-person editorial team. Each of these teams are led by different directors that make up their executive board. The members of this executive board, are as follows:
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Madison Mento – Co-President & CC, Public Relations major with minors in Spanish and Photography, class of 2021. Madison has been involved with Her Campus since freshman year and became co-president in May.
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Madeline Merinuk – Co-President & CC, Journalism major with Fine Arts minor, class of 2021. Madeline has been involved with Her Campus since freshman year and became co-president in May.
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Paige Strout – Vice President & Blog Editor, Journalism major with Creative Writing minor, class of 2021. Paige has been involved since freshman year.
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Melanie Haid – Secretary, Journalism major with a German minor, class of 2021. Melanie has been involved since freshman year.
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Claire Blaha – Treasurer, Journalism major with Creative Writing minor, class of 2021. Claire has been involved since freshman year.
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Olivia Crowley – Marketing & Events Director, Public Relations major with Music minor, class of 2021. Olivia has been involved since freshman year.
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Katie Pericak – Social Media Director, BFA in Theater Performance with Journalism minor, class of 2021. Katie has been involved since freshman year.
Since the chapter has a 45-person editorial team, they publish a lot of articles every week. Still, we wanted to know what their favorite articles have been over the last year. The CCs selected four feature articles that were published during the previous semester. The first of which is Cassity Stewart’s “What to Do When a Brand Doesn’t Match Your Morals”, and the second of which is “Dragging Your Astrology Sign for Filth” by Olivia Crowley. Thirdly, the chapter decided to select “To the Tinder Boys: What NOT to Do” by CC Madison Mento, who loves this piece because even though she wrote it, she used content gathered from everyone. Lastly in terms of features, they wanted to highlight “Happy Bi-Visibility Day: We Exist!” by Katie Pericak. Their favorite profile that has been published was by writer Gabriella Craig, entitled “empowHER: Learning from Professor Katrina Sims.” If you are looking for some more amazing content, feel free to check out the Her Campus Hofstra Page!
Since the chapter has a dedicated events team, they are always running events on campus. One of the biggest events that they do is their annual Dream Job Panel, where female media professionals attend the panel to discuss their career paths and give advice to students at Hofstra. Last year, the panel included Serena Kerrigan (@serenakerrigan), Emily Miethner (@emilymiethner), and Naledi Ushe ‘17 (@nalediushe). They love this event in particular because it helps to add in a real world element to the work that they do in their chapter. The event has also helped get some of the members of the club jobs and internships.
This semester, they have been able to hold a lot of bonding events as a team due to the dedication of their marketing and events team (which their executive board is really proud of)! They have gotten to do a mood board event, partner with Madewell for a styling party, and participate in Hofstra’s annual “Shake a Rake” event (where community members volunteer to rake leaves for senior citizens in the community). The chapter has a few upcoming events as well that they are excited about. They have an upcoming clothing swap event where they are going to trade the clothing that they don’t wear anymore, and they also partnered with Midori Linea jewelry for an upcoming styling party that they are looking forward to.
Reflecting back on her time as a member of HC Hofstra, CC Madison stated that her favorite memory dates all the way back to when she first joined Her Campus. She informed us that her favorite memory is “my very first bonding event with Her Campus as a wee baby freshman. We got sponsored by Nationals to do a Primark shopping trip before College Fashion Week 2017, and we all rode in Ubers to get to the closest Primark all the way in Staten Island. I got so car sick that I almost passed out, but the team was so helpful once we got there. I didn’t know any of them because I just joined the organization, but a ton of them sat down with me, got me some water, and hung out together until I felt better. That’s when I knew I found a supportive, empowering community. At a time when I felt my worst, Her Campus Hofstra was there to lift me back up. It may seem like a small thing, but community is everything and my community was there for me.”
HC Hofstra is extremely involved on campus, and with that comes the recognition from the Hofstra community. It is incredibly easy to find the chapter and what they are doing if you are on campus, even for just a short amount of time. You will be able to find them at the club fair for both the university and the school of communications, however, if you happened across their chapter outside of these events, they would still welcome you with open arms. If you are interested in joining, all you need to do is reach out to the club email address: hc.hofstra@hercampus.com.
Finally, we asked the chapter what one thing they want everyone to know is, to which CC Madison responded: “I think it goes back to community. At HC Hofstra, we always refer to ourselves as a ‘team’ because that’s the culture we strive to cultivate. We’re a large chapter, but everyone is involved and dedicated to supporting the team in whatever way they can. We’re teammates because we all work together towards the common goal of creating content that best represents our chapter and the greater Hofstra community, and I think we achieve that goal a little more every day. We’re also a mixed bag. Our leadership is typically PR and Journalism majors, but our team also consists of Education majors, Engineering, Medicine, Language, Fine Arts, and so many more. We strive to include everyone on our team because a diverse team is an effective team.”
If you want to learn more about this self described “Innovative, loyal, and determined” chapter, you can follow them on their social media channels below:
Instagram – @hchofstra
Facebook – Her Campus at Hofstra
Twitter – @hchofstra
Pinterest – @hchofstra / Her Campus Hofstra
Youtube – Her Campus Hofstra
Bonus Questions:
TS: What Hogwarts house does your chapter most identify with?
MM: Is it too basic to say Gryffindor? We’re so Gryffindor we just couldn’t be any other house. I mean, talk about “team.”
TS: Is your chapter more cat people or dog people?
MM: I think we’re made up of more cat people, but as a unit, we present more as dog people. Again, loyal, people-people, energetic, etc. (Writer’s note: after asking this question, Hofstra is the first chapter to say they are cat people and I am so happy to have found some more cat loving friends, even if as a team they have some BDE––big dog energy).
TS: What time of year (semester, trimester, quarter) has the best classes to add to your schedules?
MM: This is an interesting question but definitely Fall. The Fall semester has all the goods.
*All photos provided by HC Hofstra*