Name: Kristin Mathuny
Year: Senior
Major: Journalism
Minor: Psychology, IMC Certificate
Hometown: Newport Beach, CA
How did you get involved in PHA?
As a freshman I went through formal recruitment in January, joined my chapter, and then was selected to be a part of New Member Panhellenic (NMPHA). NMPHA had two representatives from each chapter and we met every week to talk about the different positions on the Panhellenic executive board, the 4 different Greek councils, and then we organized a Panhellenic-wide philanthropy event. I loved the cross-chapter collaborative community I found at NMPHA and knew as a freshman that the Panhellenic executive board was something that I was interested in being a part of eventually. I sought out leadership opportunities in my own chapter and served as the historian, then the vice president of membership. My favorite part of my role as vice president of membership was the bi-weekly roundtables with other recruitment chairs and decided to apply for Panhellenic to continue this cross-chapter dialogue. I was elected as the Vice President of Public Relations on PHA last November.
What does your role in PHA entail?
A large part of my role on PHA is considering the brand of Panhellenic. It’s my job to consider how our events, sponsorships, and communications portray our community, and this is something that I talk about in our weekly executive board meetings. I also do all of our graphic design and recently redesigned our logo. I approve all merchandise that chapters order, and I order promotional materials and merchandise for recruitment events and our community in general. I help our board prepare for interviews with the media, and I also manage all of our social media accounts.
Tell us a little more about Women’s Empowerment Week!
Our Vice President of Programming, Laura Smith, planned Women’s Empowerment Week this fall collaborating with Northwestern student group, Women in Leadership. It’s a 5-day event with two pre-professional programs, a breast cancer awareness program, an arts night with women’s art groups on campus, and a hot chocolate sale benefitting the YWCA. Next week, we’ll have a follow-up event to watch the volleyball team play against Minnesota, supporting our female athletes.
Why do you think it’s important for women to support themselves as well as each other?
I think that despite the fact that women have the opportunity to participate “equally” in society (receiving a advanced degrees, heading large corporations, etc.) we still struggle with societal expectations of womanhood. We’ve all seen the Pantene commercial that highlights some of these societal expectations and implications of womanhood. Woman’s empowerment is crucial if we want to provide a space where it’s just as likely for a woman to be a respected leader as it is for a man. Providing empowerment for other women is crucial if we want to really change the way that our society works. I believe that empowering one another is a way to provide mentorship opportunities for women in a variety of careers, it’s a way to celebrate the different life experiences and choices women make, and it is a way to move our country forward in how we talk about gender and womanhood.
What else are you involved in on campus?
I’m a member of F&F Marketing on the Creperie Saint Germain client team. Until this quarter I was the director of marketing for Spoon, but I have really focused my involvement for the quarter on PHA, especially since this is my last quarter on campus.