The first time I realized I wanted to be a part of the Residence Hall Association was my freshman year during the FYRE program. The FYRE program is for first year resident students and during the program, you get to meet other freshman resident students and some transfers. You also get to meet some upperclassman; they were the ones who ran the program. They introduced themselves and told us how life on campus was. The program was a three day program (Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and school on Monday). They kept us busy. I remember thinking that I was never going to be bored here.

          So many upperclassman were participating in these events and I knew that I wanted to do this for the next freshman class, but unfortunately that did not happen. I was too shy and I could not bring myself to sign up. Just the thought of talking in front of people got me nervous. Then I met a woman who worked on campus. I met her through a friend and I would talk to her sometimes. One day she asked me if I was a part of any clubs and I answered, “No”. She looked at me and asked, “What are you waiting for?” She explained to me that it is a crucial part of the college experience. Every time that I saw her she would ask me the same question and my answer would still be no.

In my sophomore year, fall semester, I decided to just take a leap and join Residence Hall Association and if it became too much, I just would not continue. I signed up and they called me for the spring semester. At the first meeting I was so nervous. I was jittery; my heart was beating so fast. I just did not want to mess up. When they started asking for ideas, I stayed quiet the whole time and I thought for sure they are going to kick me out of the club. I did not really know how a college club operated because I never joined anything, not even in high school

           When I went back to tell the lady who pushed me to commit to extracurricular activities, she was so proud of me. I didn’t have the heart to quit and I definitely did not want to go back to her and tell her that I got “kicked out”. I promised myself that at the next meeting I was going to speak up and I did. During the meeting I remembered a quote I heard before, “fake it, till you become it”, so I was determined. I gave my idea about a party that I thought many students would enjoy. Surprisingly, the club liked the idea, especially since they usually didn’t have parties during the spring semester. It was such a good turnout.

           Being in the club pushed me to do something I couldn’t imagine myself doing. I met so many people and it also pushed to be a more outgoing person. It also boosted my confidence and it made me want to join other clubs and pursue greater things at Farmingdale state college; like becoming a Rambassador.

           I’m so happy that I decided to join Residence Hall Association because now I get to be a part of planning the events/programs that happen on campus. I am a part of the improvement of residence life. The ideas of the club can shape a person’s thoughts of living on campus for the next few years. It gives me a chance to be creative and show my full potential. Some of the events that have been put together by Residence Hall Association was the Roller-skating Night, Movie night, Poetry and coffee, Mid-night Comedy show , Ramfest, Paint Night, Green and White party, and Rock and Jock, to name a few.