This week’s Campus Celebrity is Carlie Beard, a junior Journalism major from Cleveland, Ohio! She has a passion for fashion and aspires to become a prominent influencer in the fashion industry. Carlie has a nonprofit organization called Carlie Cares that focuses on giving toiletry items to the less fortunate. Let’s learn more about Carlie and her positive initiative!
HC: What makes you stand out from the average person?
CB: I think what makes me stand out the most is that I am unapologetically Carlie. I’m not afraid to be who God created me to be, and to really just take all of my qualities and try to be the best person I can, and always work to the best of my ability.
HC: Why did you create Carlie Cares?
CB: I actually created Carlie Cares because when I was younger I would work with my Grandma at our church’s soup kitchen, and I would notice that people that would come in for the hot meals had an issue with hygiene, and if people have to choose whether they’d feed themselves or bathe themselves, they will choose the healthiest option which is to feed themselves. With that being said, I feel that Carlie Cares breaks that barrier and that is what’s really important to me. When you smell good, you feel good and you’re confident. I never want to take that for granted; I feel like everyday we fail to realize that we have all these necessities that not everyone has.
HC: What inspires you?
CB: I think that a lot of things inspire me. People on the daily basis inspire me, like just when I’m walking around. Whether I’m back at home in Cleveland or I’m on campus, just seeing people interact always inspires me. My main inspiration is my little brother. He watches everything that I do, so it’s really important that I am a good role model for him. He really inspires me just to work my hardest and to know that he’s watching is what pushes me everyday.
HC: Who do you look up to as a role model?
CB: I definitely have a few role models. One I have on a personal level is my mother. She works very hard just to provide for me and my little brother. Just to see her really care for us and see how she’s very selfless, she is my main role model. Another person I really look up to is Michelle Obama. I really admire her for one because she is her own person besides being Barack Obama’s wife she has her own credentials, and I think that’s awesome.
HC: Why did you decide to attend Hampton University?
CB: I decided to attend Hampton because I really wanted to go to an HBCU. It was either Hampton University or Clark Atlanta University, and I wasn’t really feeling Clark and I had never been to Hampton before. What really inspired me was that my mom went to Clark and my Aunt went to Spelman, so HBCUs were always a part of our family. It was never a question whether I wanted to go to an HBCU or not.
HC: What are your long term goals?
CB: They’ve actually changed in the matter of the past few months. As a Journalism major, I’m really into media and I always wanted to be a journalist, but recently I had an internship with Harlem’s Fashion Row, and through that internship it really showed me that I want to work in the fashion industry. With that being said, I would say that my new long term goal is to be a fashion journalist and work in the fashion industry.
HC: What can we expect from Carlie Cares this school year?
CB: For the remainder of 2018, I can tell you that we’re definitely dedicating it to women. In October we’re planning to do Go Pink and Go Purple. Pink for breast cancer and purple for domestic violence.
HC: What is your favorite thing to do in your free time?
CB: First off, I love sleeping. I love naps, and I really feel like they’re my escape from everything. It’s really bad, but a good nap can just help me move forward with whatever I was struggling with during the day. I also love shopping. If I’m sad, I’m shopping. If I’m happy, I’m shopping. If I’m hungry, I’m probably shopping with a slushie in my hand. I love finding good bargains as well and I feel like fashion is a way of expressing ourselves without having to say anything. Just in different styles people have, I’ll think something is cute even though it’s not necessarily my style.
HC: How do you balance your work and extracurricular activities?
CB: I balance work life and extracurricular activities through my planner. Without it, I will not know what’s going on. I have my little pink sparkly planner and everything is written in it and I literally have to take it with me day by day or I will get overwhelmed. My planner is key to keeping everything in order.
HC: What is your favorite thing about yourself?
CB: I think my favorite thing about myself is how caring I am. I think I really love that about myself. I really work hard to help those in my community because it’s important to me and is very deep and near to my heart. Looking at people for who they are and not what they can give me and just caring about them and their concerns is something I think is a really good thing about myself.
Follow Carlie on social media!
Instagram: @carlie.bee and @carlie.cares