This week’s Campus Celebrity is the fabulous and fierce Chikodili Agwuna. Chikodili, known by most as Chiki, graduated from Penn State Behrend in 2015, where she was well known on campus her fun-loving, hilarious personality, her high involvement to make the campus a better place, and her phenomenal talent in writing and music. Chiki has let her passions become her success. Since graduating, she has started a publishing company and is a part of her friend’s first novel- (personally, we’re waiting for the day that she is cast in Pitch Perfect 3). Chiki flourished as a Penn State Behrend student and continues to do so as an alum! It’s no wonder she is this week’s Campus Celeb!
Name: Chikodili Agwuna
Year Graduated: 2015
Major: Creative Writing
What made you decided to attend college at Behrend and major in Creative Writing?“Behrend has one of the best Creative Writing BFA programs in the country, so it was high on my list. The scholarship I got helped the decision a lot, but once I was settled, I knew it was a great fit for me.”
What clubs and organizations were you involved with as a student at Penn State Behrend?“LEB, Lion Ambassadors, MCC, Leadership Unlimited, ODK, Trigon, NAACP, and of course, the #1 Behrend Acappella group, Tone-Acious!”
How do you feel your involvement with these organizations has helped you since graduating?“Probably the biggest help has been the sheer number of t-shirts I now have from each club (there’s no such thing as too many free t’s, am I right?). But my involvement has helped me with the job search, because we did some really cool stuff that applies to jobs I never thought I’d be able to even apply for. Also, it’s only because of the skills I learned and my experiences at Behrend that starting a publishing company just a few months after graduating was even possible.”
What are you most passionate about?“Writing, reading, music, service, tweeting, TGIT, and Chipotle.”
Who has been your biggest inspiration?“I’ve been paying a lot of attention to my mom since I came home and the way that she lives her life in order to make the world a better place, always helping other people, cooking for them, taking them in, etcetera. [Watching her] has helped me shape my dreams so I can use my skills to make the world a better place too.”
What are some of your future goals?“I hope to move to California next year. Mainly for grad school, but also because I have experienced enough of winter in Erie to last me a lifetime.”
Tell me about Black Cat On A White Porch.“Black Cat on a White Porch is my friend and business partner Erik Parshall’s first novel. It’s based on a true story that his grandma told him from when she lived in Virginia in 1966. A group of women from her class went to her house for a project, some white and some black, and the next day, something happened as a result of those women coming over. We’ve been working on it for a while now and I actually got to write the foreword, which I was really excited about. The Kindle version is available on Amazon!”
If you could give one piece of advice to the students of Behrend, what would it be?“Pay attention. Not just in class or on campus, but to the world. Graduating can be hard because you miss your friends and campus life and all that, so don’t make it harder by failing to join the rest of the world. Or find a way to be in college forever.”
Check out one of Chiki’s covers here: https://soundcloud.com/chikodili-agwuna/work-song-cover