Charismatic. Determined. Humorous (at least, she thinks she’s funny). Awkward. Those are the four words Alana Hinkston used to describe herself, but there are an innumerable amount of adjectives that could describe the girl who seems to do everything. Alana Hinkston is an SCU junior marketing and communications double major with a minor in retail studies. She is from Redbluff, California, but grew up in the Bay Area. Alana has done almost everything there is to do at SCU: she is the Vice President of Public Relations for ASG, on the board with Igwebuike, planned Love Jones for the past two years, a Peer Adviser, a retired Orientation Leader, currently a Neighborhood Representative for the University Villas, a Ruff Rider, involved with APB, and this is without mentioning her many jobs on campus. She works at the Benson info desk, in the Graduate Business Career Management, for the 49ers as an Application Experience Specialist, and from time to time she “dabbles in the bookstore.” And this summer Alana will be in Minneapolis, Minnesota as an intern at the Target Headquarters!
What motivates Alana to be involved with almost every aspect of campus life at SCU? It’s simple: she loves being busy. Alana loves the feeling of giving back to her community and working with different people in a variety of experiences and settings. She strives to unify the school to a greater extent during her time here. Before she leaves she wants to see campus organizations collaborating more with each other in order to serve the student body in greater ways. Alana may have ambitious goals, but she has the work ethic to see them come to fruition.
Even with such a crazy schedule she does get a few blocks of spare time here and there, which she uses to invite friends over for breakfast and dinner. Because apart from keeping Santa Clara up and running, Alana also cooks! Though she loves keeping busy, she also loves some TV time—Scandal and Empire are her go-to shows.
With the numerous experiences she has had at SCU, Alana is a fountain of wisdom for all those who are only just beginning their adventures at Santa Clara. Her advice to freshman looking to get involved is to try a lot of stuff out and “stick with your niche.” Once you have found that place where you feel you belong, keep it and give it your best. She also recommends learning your limits, but that does not mean quitting. Through all of the obstacles she’s dealt with, Alana says she never considered quitting; she only worked harder to make it work.
On a more personal note, the advice Alana would give to her freshmen self would be to “slow down and smell the roses.” This is Alana’s junior year and she says it has all passed by so quickly, so next year she’ll be looking to really enjoy her surroundings and follow her own advice. Students like Alana make SCU what it is. During her time here, Alana has affected the lives of the student body in so many ways, and I can certainly say we are all thankful for the great energy she puts into our community.