Name: Tenika Seitz
Year in School: Senior
Campus Involvement: Vice President of Programming for the Panhellenic Association, Judicial Board/Slating Committee for Delta Zeta, Writing Consultant at the Howe Center for Writing Excellence
Fun Fact: I have an identical twin sister who is a Resident Assistant on campus in Richard Hall
HC: How did you go about starting as a college student? What kind of advice would you give to freshmen wanting to be active?
TS: When I was a freshman, I immediately wanted to start getting involved on campus because I was so involved coming out of high school. I went to all the mega fairs and started signing up for small groups until I was able to figure out to where I really wanted to dedicate myself. At the start of my second semester, I joined my sorority, Delta Zeta, and it seemed like the opportunities for advancement within my chapter were endless! As I said, I always liked being an actively involved person, so right away I started stepping up into whatever involvement I could. I was on committees, assisting executive chairs, and attending all the sorority events I could if they were involving my chapter. I also got together with other members of my freshman residence hall a couple times a week to play intramural sports like soccer and softball.
The best advice I could give a first year student is to never stop networking. Even in my final year I am still constantly seeking ways to meet new people and get involved in more activities. Expanding on my network has made the leadership roles I’ve held possible, and the skill of communicating between these networks will be vital towards my life post-graduation.
HC: How did you get started as a leader? If there’s more than one thing you’re involved with, what is your biggest passion?
TS: My first big role was at the Greek Liaison for the Diversity Affairs Council. I stepped onto the executive board without much experience in either DAC, or my chapter, so it was kind of a rough start. However, because I felt so behind at the beginning of my term it forced me to step up in other places in order to close any gap in experiences. Quickly after, I became the head of public relations within my sorority, and used this position to make myself known through anything involving Delta Zeta’s name. The fall of my sophomore year was probably the most important semester for me as far as my leadership experiences go. I attended multiple leadership conferences and program retreats on behalf of DZ, and was able to exponentially increase my relationships on campus between Greeks and non-Greeks in less than one semester.
Over the years, I was a volunteer for Adopt-A-School, served on the Panhellenic council on different committee positions, and participated in multiple programs, retreats, conferences, etc. regarding sorority life. I held multiple positions within Delta Zeta and was an MU campus representative for various outside companies.
Two years after the start of all of this, I am now stepping down as the Vice President of Programming for the Panhellenic Executive Council, a level one leadership position on campus, similar to the executive cabinet of Associated Student Government, and will be transitioning out of my roles within my chapter this November as well. Out of all of this involvement, it would seem easy to say my biggest passion has been being in a sorority, however, it would be more accurate to say my passion has been in building relationships and working with diverse groups of people. I have tried my best to seize any opportunity possible, whether it directly involves sorority life or my chapter, as long as I can justify it complementing my life in some way in the future. For example, I was offered to attend a conference in Indianapolis for Teach For America next month as a part of a program for diversified student leaders on campus. I do not expect to know many, if any, other participants in the program, but I could not be more excited to see what the experience will hold for making new friends, and learning more lessons.
HC: What are some of the biggest challenges that you face in your position as a leader?
TS: Since my biggest role as a leader has definitely been on PHA, I would say the hardest thing has been knowing when to represent my chapter, and when to represent sorority life as a whole. My biggest project on the council was planning and organizing the largest event on campus: Greek Week. I worked closely with the other 8 members of PHA, and our few staff advisors in the Cliff Alexander Office of Sorority Life & Leadership, but for the most part, myself, and my counterpart solely led the project on the Interfraternity Council. Being that Greek Week is inevitably a competitive event, there were countless situations in which chapters turned against one another in the heat of the competition. It was difficult to diffuse these situations, but it was even more challenging when they involved members of DZ. Though it didn’t happen often, I struggled with any situation of conflict because I often knew the people involved, even if they weren’t in my chapter. At the end of the day, I really hated having to play the bad guy, even if it was in order to keep everyone safe.
HC: What is/are your proudest accomplishment/s in terms of student involvement and/or being a student at Miami?
TS: Planning the Greek Week event was an eleven-month project, and definitely the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I worked constantly on the orchestration of everything from the time I took my term last November, and have still been tying loose ends these past few weeks, even as the event ended a month ago. Being a leader is something four years ago I would have said to be natural for me, however, with all the responsibility I’ve taken on in college: maintain multiple jobs, keeping up with my academics, collaborating with peers, and a social life, all while holding down these multiple leadership roles, is something that has truly defined my ability to lead.
HC: What are you most looking forward to the rest of this school year?
TS: I am excited to see what else I can do. For a while I thought I’d be burned out entirely and that once I transitioned out of my roles this fall, I wouldn’t be dissatisfied coming home early every night. Considering my personality though, I know that’s not going to be the case. I plan to remain close with PHA, and step up in whatever ways I can next semester, such as volunteering as a mentor for the spring retreats and programs that I was simply a participant in the past. I am excited to see how the future leaders begin to develop as I was doing this time last year, but I am also looking forward to continuing learning myself.
HC: What are your plans for after graduation?
TS: Right now, I am still trying to figure that out. I guess I have been really focused on what I’m doing for so long that the thought of what I’m going to be doing next has kind of been neglected. I am currently waiting to hear from a couple of companies I met with after career fair last month involving positions in management and sales, and I also plan to apply soon for a traveling leadership consultant position for DZ, which would make me, if selected for the position, a national employee of my chapter post-graduation.
HC: What legacy do you hope to leave behind as a leader?
TS: I wasn’t always a leader–even though I thought I was in high school. I guess if I could leave a legacy behind, I would want future students to stay encouraged. It’s been difficult for me to balance a lot of the things I’m involved in, especially with my personal life, and relationships. There are a lot of people at Miami who aren’t involved in a lot, and sometimes it’s intimidating to see those people, and want their “freedom.” Especially this semester, there was a sense of jealousy of all my friends who started senior year off with a bang, while I was working hard to coordinate Greek Week. Still, I wouldn’t trade my experiences for the world. At the end of it all, I am so thankful for the opportunities I’ve had and how nicely they’ve strung more and more opportunities along for me. Without these opportunities I wouldn’t have my best friends and my support system, my professional references, and successful mentors… and an invincible motivation. I suppose it’s not really a legacy, but more, final words of wisdom – don’t lose focus. Everything has been more than worth it, and without it all, I’d have nothing.