Ariel Simone Koren: “Just A.S.K.! …I’ll be there.” With this slogan, the bubbly, energetic girl from Jacksonville, Florida took the class of 2015 by a storm. Ariel ran for and won the position of 2015 Class Board President almost one year ago. She thus became the first female class board president since the class of 2004! It only takes a five-minute interview to realize what makes this Zumba-obsessed, multilingual lover of foreign culture worthy of Campus Celebrity status; this one-of-a-kind leader has big plans for the year ahead.
Name: Ariel Koren
School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major(s): International Relations and Linguistics
What made you want to run for Class Board President?
I was so excited during NSO to meet my classmates who all came from different walks of life, diverse backgrounds, and who had so many disparate passions; I was eager to bring them all together and to represent our class’s every voice.
What do you do as President?
I’m so lucky to be a part of a dynamic board of 11 people. My board and I work together to bring unifying social programming to the Class of 2015. I also represent Class of 2015 interests in Penn Student Government and write the Class of 2015 Spotlight, a column that highlights the inspiring achievements and unique stories of different members of Penn ‘15.
Favorite Class Board event to date?
We started a new event last year called “What We All Bring to the Table” –a huge international dinner celebration of our class’s cultural diversity. Watch it here.
What can we expect from the 2015 Class Board this year?
This year we’re going bigger than ever! Our first event, Skimmer Fest, is coming up on September 22nd; we’ve collaborated with our fellow Class Boards and SPEC to put on a huge pre-game festival on College Green to lead up to our first football game of the season. Additionally, this year we’re aiming to empower Penn ’15 to give back to the community as a unified class. In keeping with our goal to facilitate a class-wide community service contribution, we’ve expanded the board to include a brand new position: VP of Civic Engagement, filled by Rachel Bernard.
What else are you involved here at Penn?
Theater, teaching Spanish at Lea Elementary School, Maimonides Fellowship, the Harnwell International Program, and as many Zumba classes as I can make it to!
Favorite place on campus?
Williams Hall. Where else can you practice your Chinese, Spanish, French, Korean, Hebrew, and Portuguese in the same conversation?!!
Name a movement on campus that’s inspired you: The Vagina Monologues
Tell us something most people wouldn’t be able to tell about you?
I am addicted to doing handstands and could walk upside down for hours.
If you could be any Disney character who would it be and why?
Pumba from The Lion King. I love his sky’s-the-limit, glass-half-full, Hakuna-Matata attitude. And I’ve always wanted to be fluent in Swahili.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world for a day, where would it be?
Back to Taiwan, where I spent my summer
Words to the women at Penn?
Our time is now.