Name:
Mara Senchak
Year:
Class of 2018 (rip)
Hometown:
Mahwah, NJ
Major(s):
Accounting and Government, with potential for a Marketing concentration, depending on my motivation-levels next semester
Activities on Campus:
AMP (Film Committee), Blacksmithing Guild, Entertainment Business Association, Knot Your Granny’s Yarn Club, Delta Gamma Fraternity, and currently weaseling my way into WCWM
Describe Yourself in Three Words:
Sarcastic, Quirky, Open-minded
Go-To Starbucks Order:
Hot Chocolate (seasonally flavored)
Favorite Book:
As much as I want to be creative, it’d be insincere if I didn’t say Harry Potter.
Favorite Movie:
I hate this question because it truly depends on the genre. I also hate it because people probably think that I would have a more sophisticated answer. But The Proposal brings me so much joy. Also, you can’t go wrong with a My Cousin Vinny type of night.
Hobbies:
Making Spotify playlists, which sounds really lame, but I give them punny names based off of historical figures so it’s actually super cool.
Career Goals:
I’m thinking event planning, but I didn’t plan for it, so I’m taking it day by day, giving it my all, shooting for the moon, and putting my best cliche forward.
What is one thing on your bucket list?
I really want to master the violin. I used to play it casually, but my mom recently bought one off a “Househusbands/wives selling things on Facebook” page and I’ve been meaning to pick it up again. Also, a game of Life-Sized Monopoly.
What is one thing people would be surprised to learn about you?
I’m actually quite shy! People never believe me. Also, I lucid dream, which is like Inception, but without being as infuriatingly uncertain.
Describe your perfect day in Williamsburg:
Sunny, but crisp with a nice breeze. Puffy clouds. I want to be able to wear a sweater. My friends, and probably even acquaintances, know about my affinity for knitwear. And if you throw in a scarf, every day’s perfect.
What is your favorite part about being a member of AMP?
Probably the fact that I can now add cotton candy making as a skill on LinkedIn.
What is your favorite AMP memory?
Our recent Baker’s Crust (Fancy) Sit-down Extravaganza. Despite running low on just about everything, the evening was authentically resourceful, as I got to witness the innovative use of two spoons to cut chicken.
What is your favorite thing about William and Mary?
I love that William and Mary gives me access to people, which sounds super creepy so I’ll explain. Freshmen year, while engaging in delirious conversations with my good friend Jack Zhang, I had a realization that everyone around me is living as vivid and as complex of a life as I was. I later found out that this realization is called “sonder”, and when it hit me, I was in awe. Some people might experience sonder earlier in life, but for me it was at 2am, lounging in the cockroach-ridden kitchen of Spotswood Hall. Ever since, I’ve become fascinated with people: understanding them, learning about their passions, their idiosyncrasies, trying to see things from their perspective. Over a lifetime, few people will show you who they are, whether or not it adds up or makes sense. And here at William and Mary, students are willing to be vulnerable, to over-share, to be honest. The real world is scary, and people are justifiably hardened and inaccessible. Being in a community of generally open-minded individuals, I’ve had the pleasure of capturing glimmers of vivid lives outside my own head, which is arguably worth four years of out-of-state.
What is one piece of advice you have for freshmen (or anyone)?
Don’t wish away your life. Yes, you might be less stressed after a midterm, but then there will be another midterm, and another midterm, then a final. Midterm, midterm, final, midterm, and all of a sudden it’s senior year. Enjoy the weeks that you have exams. Try to be content with the present. Don’t constantly focus on reaching a time when there will be fewer commitments and hindrances, because before you know it, life’s gone. My roommate would kill me if I didn’t reference that cliche about not waiting for storms to pass, because I stuck it on our walls the past three years. I now have it on a mug and everything. But in all honesty, cliches hold truths. And this truth happens to reference Williamsburg weather patterns.
If you were President of the College for a day, what would you do?
I always wonder how much power the President realistically has. In actuality, could I Dumbledore away finals? Probably not. There are so many political considerations and backroom actors that must factor into everything the President says and does. However, I would totally re-establish Meatless Monday’s because I’m all about those fhicken strips. Also, I would probably uproot the educational system entirely, but I would have to consult my Public Policy friends before I disclose any of my explicit recommendations.