Name: Regina Munsch
Year: Junior
Major: Industrial Engineering
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA
Activities on Campus: Pitt Bands, Blue & Gold Society, The Panther Pitt, Tau Beta Sigma, Student Alumni Association
Her Campus: Describe yourself in three words.
Regina Munsch: My cute answer is Hail to Pitt! My real answer is passionate, motivated, and outgoing.
HC: I love that! It’s so fitting because you are definitely the most “Pitt” person I know, and you loved Pitt even before you were a student here. Can you tell me some of your familial history with Pitt?
RM: So, my first lullaby, I kid you not, was “Hail to Pitt,” and I’ve been singing it since before I can remember! I’ve been going to Pitt football and basketball games my entire life, and I didn’t think too much about my actual educational future for a long time. But then, you get to that awkward teenage phase of your life when you start thinking about what you want your future to be, and I was kind of like, “Hey, wait, Pitt is a fabulous school. It’s really tough to get into, they hold you to a high standard, and it’s close to home,” …all that kind of stuff. And, on top of that, I just have this incredible bond with my sister and my mom and my aunt, who all went to Pitt. It’s incredible to share this with them. All of that made me decide to come here. And being in Pittsburgh, you can take advantage of everything. You get the hustle and bustle of the city, and I’m not the kind of person who could thrive in a typical, rural college town. It’s just perfect. It really is the perfect fit, and that’s something I’ve been told since day one.
HC: So how much did your sister influence your decision to come to Pitt?
RM: A whole lot. Seeing how much fun Maria had here and hearing about all the fun things she did on campus was a big influence for me when I was in high school. When I was younger, it was sometimes tough navigating our six-year age difference, but like any younger sister, I want to be just like my big sister, so when I saw the amazing experiences she was having here, I knew I wanted that for myself, too. My mom has also been really involved: she’s been on the Alumni Board, among other groups, and that also had a huge influence on me. We would go assemble lanterns together for Lantern Night with my Girl Scout Troop when I was little and that sort of thing, so it really was all these little factors that influenced my love for Pitt. But yes, when Maria came to Pitt, I definitely saw it in a new light.
HC: What’s your favorite Pitt memory?
RM: Lantern Night. But it’s tough, because I definitely have a couple, almost different brands, of Pitt memories. Band-wise, either the Penn State or Clemson football games from my freshman year. Penn State was awesome, and then I got to go to the Clemson game and see that win in person, which is pretty hard to beat. But overall, definitely Lantern Night.
HC: So you mentioned Pitt Band. What other clubs are you in that you really enjoy?
RM: Blue and Gold Society is just an amazing organization. It takes a really special group of people to make waking up at 7 a.m. on a Wednesday worth it, which is when we have meetings. I also love Pitt traditions, so being called a “tradition keeper” is incredible. I’ve gotten to do so many cool things I never even dreamed I could do: I wrote a video script for the first ring ceremony, helped set up for the Cathedral Ball, taught the cheers at Convocation, and so many other things like that. It’s so much fun to help out at special events with the Chancellor while getting to know everyone on campus. Between Band and BGS, I feel like I have a hand extended to everyone on campus. Through the Blue and Gold Society, I’m in SAA, the Student Alumni Association, which also provides great networking opportunities and maintains those fun Pitt traditions.
This year, I’m also on the executive board for the Panther Pitt. I’m trying to create more relations between the Panther Pitt and the band, and between the Panther Pitt and the SAA. It’s been really awesome! I got to go on the field at the Spring Game and all kinds of other cool stuff, so it’s definitely something to apply for in the spring if you really love football!
I’m also a sister of Tau Beta Sigma, which is a National Honorary Band Service Sorority. I joined in the Spring of 2016 and we’re basically moms to the band – we fix the uniforms, distribute clothing, et cetera. We also do other service projects outside of band, and we have a strong focus on empowering women and empowering women in music, which are two causes very close to my heart. It’s cool that I get to take band, which is something I love so so much, and marry it with those causes.
HC: So, let’s backtrack to the Panther Pitt: how’d you work your way into that?
RM: It was a Twitter application. I saw the tweet at around 10 p.m. the night it was due, and I just filled out the application on a whim and it happened! We get to do everything from picking what music is played on game day to consulting with the marketing department as the student voice, to coordinating giveaways to controlling the social media accounts – pretty much anything that can get students more fired up about football. I also got to go to the kickoff luncheon which was really cool, and I got to speak at the bonfire this year!
HC: So, would you say that a big motivation to join all these organizations is that behind-the-scenes stuff?
RM: I think so. I definitely don’t do it to for the visibility – that’s just an added bonus of being involved in anything. I think the best part about my extracurriculars is being able to show off my love for Pitt and helping other students. In all of these organizations, the common denominator is people who love Pitt, and that was my biggest motivation in joining everything.
HC: How do you manage to juggle academics, activities, and everything else?
RM: As a basis, I thrive on being busy. I like filling my days with stuff. I started bullet journaling last year, and I’m back into it this school year after finding a really good system that works for me. I’m a planning kind of person – and I’ll write something in my planner just to cross it off sometimes, because I just love the feeling of getting stuff done.
I’m also very talkative, so talking to my friends and my family about what’s going on in my life helps me so much. Seeking advice helps; I couldn’t do anything without the support of people listening on the phone or giving me a helping hand. The biggest thing is probably not being afraid to ask for help; too many people are afraid to ask for help because they think it makes them look weak, but I disagree. I think it makes you look strong.
HC: Do you have a Pitt bucket list item?
RM: Wow, I honestly haven’t even thought of that. I definitely want to make it to the top of the Cathedral, because I haven’t done that yet. I also want to pull an all-nighter in Benedum, because that’s such a quintessential engineer thing to do. I want to go to one game of each varsity sport, and I’d love to be in one of those Pitt commercials with Dean Bonner. Those videos are all just people who are passionate about the University, so being in one of the commercials would be so cool.
HC: What’s one of your favorite things about Pittsburgh?
RM: I can’t pick just one! It sounds kind of odd, but I love the topography of Pittsburgh. Growing up here, my favorite pastime is going to Pitt football games and tailgates and everything, so I just love the fall. My birthday is in the fall too, so just doing the things I love, celebrating my birthday, and watching the leaves change is so overwhelmingly beautiful. During late-September through October, on days with that clear blue sky, you can look in the distance and see hills with all the changing leaves and it’s just gorgeous.
I also love the people, as cliché as it sounds. Everyone here is so friendly and everyone loves Pittsburgh, so whether it be loving the city or loving the University, you have something to bond over, which is so special. And our city is very accessible, too. You get that big city feel but it’s not so big that it doesn’t feel like home.
Oh! And one more! PNC Park. I love PNC Park. At least a couple of times a year I go to a Buccos game, and being in that ballpark, watching a baseball game, and seeing that beautiful city in the background is just perfect. Nothing beats that. And with ice cream in hand, it’s perfect!
HC: Do you have a quote you live by?
RM: Yes! So, my trumpet teacher in middle school, who is one of my biggest mentors in life, told me once that, “The best way to be a better leader is to be an even better follower.” That’s always just stuck with me, and while I don’t know where the quote originated, it’s an awesome outlook. Often times it’s easy to lose sight of what being a leader really means, but I think that as long as you keep yourself grounded, you’re doing your best.
HC: What’s a random fun fact about yourself that people might not know?
RM: I’m a lifetime Girl Scout! I got my Girl Scout Gold Award my senior year of high school, which is the equivalent of the Boy Scout Eagle Scout. And, for my project, I wrote a children’s book called Growing up Catholic in Pittsburgh that I’m actually publishing! It’s full of fun analogies for kids about the city of Pittsburgh and how it relates to the Catholic faith. It was a lot of fun to write, and it’s really cool to see it coming to fruition.
*All photos belong to Regina*