Senior Natalie Kelly has certainly made the most out of her 4 years here at SCU. She will be graduating in a week with a degree in English with an emphasis in British Literature. At SCU, Natalie got involved with Delta Gamma as their Director of E-Communication, was a Wyldlife Leader, was the Editor-in-Chief of Her Campus SCU for two years, and served as its president this past year. She is currently an Editorial and Social Media Intern at a startup called UpOut in San Francisco and works mostly on their blog.
Originally hailing from New Orleans, LA, she moved to Denver, CO when she was 13. Natalie says she hopes to eventually move back to Colorado so she can be close to her family, but for now is hoping to live in San Francisco for a year or two.
When asked about her favorite memory at SCU, Natalie says that it was probably hanging out with her friends in her freshman residence hall. “One night freshman year, two of my friends and I were pre-gaming to go out but we just ended up hanging out. We had so much fun just messing around, hanging out and talking. It was really fun.” While she does admit she loves the party scene, she truly appreciates the nights where she just gets to hang out with a small group of friends. “Those are the memories that last in my mind,” says Natalie.
As the President and Editor-in-Chief of Her Campus, Natalie certainly had a lot of responsibility. She ran weekly meetings, planned content, and edited every article that was published. She also gained a lot along the way. If she could sum up her Her Campus experience in one word, it would be “empowering.” “Not only did it help me to develop my leadership skills and teamwork skills which is amazing, but my own personal sense of confidence grew.” She said hearing the stories of different women and their experiences really helped her to understand that it was okay to voice her own opinion. “Hearing what other people are thinking about has helped me see the impact I could make by voicing my opinion, which is kind of the greatest gift ever.”
There is no doubt that Natalie is going to do some great things after she graduates and she is incredibly thankful for the experience she has had here at Santa Clara. “I’m excited to start the next chapter but there is definitely that fear of getting pushed out of the nest and realizing you aren’t ready to fly. Hopefully those wings work and you just have to trust that something’s gonna happen.”
From the whole Her Campus SCU team, we wish you the best of luck, Natalie!
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