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 we wanted to introduce to you is the chapter at U Vic. HC U Vic is based at the University of Victoria, located on Vancouver Island, is an extremely eco-friendly campus and home to more than 20,000 students, and is located on Vancouver Island.
They were founded a little over 5 years ago and have been able to grow as a chapter in both size and rank over the years. They currently rank as a gold level chapter and have approximately 40 members on their team. The chapter prides itself on inclusivity and presents this value through the content that they publish, like “What It’s Like to Be a Deaf University Student,” written by Molly Feanny, and “Pronoun Primer: Non-Binary Identities and You (a Cisgender Person),” written by Astrid Antonnia. They are looking forward to “continuing to grow [HC U Vic] as [they] write about entrepreneurship, identity, self-care and more!”
The chapter is currently being led by Co-CCs Carly Grabher and Rachel Watson. Their vice president is Ria Boldt, who is charged with taking care of meeting minutes and general communication with the chapter. U Vic’s senior editor is Emma de Blois, who oversees the editing team. The chapter also has a managing editor, Madison Nelson, who edits, designs, and distributes the bi-weekly newsletter that the chapter produces. In addition, the chapter has a social media director, Kate Harder, who manages the chapter’s social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Youtube, and Snapchat: @hercampusuvic). Finally, the chapter’s marketing and events directors are Emily Wolfe and Lucy Seitz respectively, who are in the process of planning some socials that the chapter plans on hosting!
CC Carly Grabher explained that her favorite profile article from this past year was, “Sailing Solo as a Fashion Entrepreneur.” She went on to explain that she “had the joy of interviewing the owner of a Vancouver luxury resale boutique, “Mine and Yours.” [She] learned so much about entrepreneurship in this fast-paced industry, and [the] business’s focus on sustainability felt incredibly relevant when it was published just two weeks before the Climate Strike—talk about good timing!”
In terms of events, the chapter is always holding them. Many of their members are friends with each other outside the club, so holding team bonding events is just like having a giant hang-out session that everyone wants to come to. Some of their favorite events include the Women’s Sexual Health Panel and the Headshot Event that they held in the past. They also really enjoyed the social hosted by Kate Harder.
It was the chapter’s first social, and everyone attended the event in PJs. They brought games to play and food to share, and overall, everyone had a really great night! They had so much fun talking to one another that they forgot to break into all the games the members brought, and the team genuinely loves being in each other’s company. They are especially looking forward to their first social at the Board Game Café. They reserved a giant table for the chapter, and are planning on drinking milkshakes and playing games together.
The team is also looking forward to some things outside of events like creating original graphics for their social media feeds. They have recently had a lot of talented photographers join their team, and they are excited to utilize their skills to add something special to their social media pages.
If you are interested in joining the HC U Vic team, feel free to message them on any of their social media, or send an email to hc.u-vic@hercampus.com expressing your interest in joining. They love meeting new members so much that they typically respond within 24 hours of reaching out! They will let you know when the next meeting will be and provide instructions on the next steps that you can take in order to officially join the chapter. They want to make sure that everyone knows that “It’s never too late to join HC UVIC, no matter what time of the year it is. We’re a friendly group and are always happy to welcome new members.”
They continued by saying that, “Everyone is welcome! Seriously. We love diversity in our group because it results in varying articles and creative voices. Plus, you don’t have to write. There are lots of other positions like being an intern for the Social Media team, the podcast team, and more.” Finally, the chapter described themselves in three words, stating that HC U Vic is “Inclusive, Fun and Creative.” So if this sounds like an organization that you would want to work with, feel free to reach out to them in order to join!
Bonus Questions:
TS: What Hogwarts house does your chapter most identify with?
CCs: Gryffindor, because we’re all go-getters! Every single person on our team is a leader; it’s inspiring to be amongst them.
TS: Does your chapter identify more with beaches or lakes?
CCs: Both! There are so many beaches and lakes in our city. It’s a great escape from the campus hustle and bustle.
*All photos provided by HC U Vic*