Steven has done so much for Rider’s Campus and he strives for success. He is a friendly and optimistic student that loves serving the community. Here you’ll read about his future and what an amazing person he is.
Q: What is the most rewarding part of being involved on campus?
A:I didn’t really decide to become a leader on campus. It just kind of happened by itself. Music is a great motivator for me as being a Christian. My faith keeps going from day to day. My family also encourages me as well. The most rewarding part of being involved on campus, I guess, is being able to get leadership skills in activities that I love.
Q: You areinvolved in Rider Community Scholars. What does that mean to you?
A:Being a Rider Community Scholar means to me that I have more responsibilities but I am able to serve the community. I applied for the program as I came upon it on the Rider website. My inspiration or motivation would have to be community service and serving at Home front- Family Preservation Center. My college experience would be so much different because I believe that I would not be as outgoing and so driven. As a leader on this campus, it keeps me busy, which allows me to stay focused and driven.
Q: You see yourself asa High school teacher and plan on eventually becoming a college professor in math.How long has this been your goal?
A: I have always wanted to be a high school teacher when I was younger. Math became my area in about 7th grade. I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher. The actual field was not necessarily so obvious. Being a math teacher is important to me because math is a topic that is becoming a fear to people. The reason for this is because they usually had a bad experience with a teacher or no one spent the time to break down the language to them. Most math teachers in the college level are horrible, which has driven me to try to be a college teacher.
Q: What qualities do you possess that you think will make you a good teacher?
A:I believe that I am a teacher who actually cares about the student. When the students believe that you care about them, then they are more likely to work with you and understand the information more. In addition, I also believe that I have the patience with the students in the field of mathematics. This is very important because students process mathematics in different speeds. Sometimes you have to take it real slow with the student at a different time to make sure they understand the information. In high school, I had a teacher who was not a math teacher; however, she was one of my best teachers that I have had. She was very stern with the class in the beginning. She made sure that her students did not take advantage of her and that her class was managed very well. However, she was a person that you could always talk to. She was understanding, but stern. This is how I feel a teacher needs to be. They need to make sure that the students understand who is in charge and they need to understand that they can come talk to the teacher for any issues they are going through.
Q: You are an active member of Rider’s Unashamed Gospel Choir. As a matter of fact, you are vice president. Explain what this organization means to you.
A:This organization means so much. When I was a freshman, I joined the choir when it was under some new leadership and it did not last long. Sophomore year, my friend and I decided to start it up from scratch. So, we developed the choir as a club and it has been a major blessing. I joined the choir because I loved singing in a gospel choir at school and I wanted to continue that and also have some Christian fellowship during the week. It is important for me to continue to be a member because I believe that I belong there with the choir. I believe that there is so much potential with this choir and that it can impact many people. The organization has affected my life because I see how much the organization has improved and it is a real blessing. It is such a blessing to see your own choir grow and become so much more than how it started.
Q: You are involved in many different things on campus. Have a favorite?
A:I enjoy all of the different things on campus. However, I would have to say that I have a special passion for Rider’s Unashamed Gospel Choir and also the math skills lab. The reason for the gospel choir is because I see much growth and more potential with the group and it excites. In addition, I love the math skills lab because this is practice for me for my future career and I love to help people out with math.
Q: What has been the most rewarding moment for you at Rider?
A:My most rewarding moment for at Rider was when I went on my first year service trip during spring break. This was rewarding because it felt so good to serve at an afterschool group with my fellow Bonner members. However, we got attached to the children and they thought that we were going to be there for an extremely long time. The issue that we helped out was that there were only 4 workers to deal with 20 kids. That is a rough thing to do when helping the children with their homework, watching the kids and trying to be active with them. By the end of the week, we had children telling us that they wished that we could stay longer than the four days because that week was the only time they were able to play games. It was a reminder that I have it real good and that I need to stop complaining about the small issues that go on in my life. It felt like we were really making a difference in these children’s lives. During the week, I forgot that I was on spring break. It validated for me that I was in the right program for community service.
Q: How will you know when you have found success or when success has found you?
A:Success does not necessarily mean that I am victorious with my results. However, it is more of the fact that I do my best when attempting a certain task or goal. At the end of the day, when I am reflecting and I feel great about myself, then that is when I know I have succeeded. In addition, in terms of future, success means being surrounded with loved ones.
Q: Do you work to live or do you live to work?
A:It depends on the job. If it’s a miserable job, then I would work to live to get money for food. However, if it is a desired career, then I will be living to work. My hope is that, when I am successful with getting the desired career, it will not be a hassle to work. In the case of teaching, that is an area where I would live to work and teach the students math.