When I first started at Sacred Heart, I wasn’t sure if I was even in the right place.
I came in undecided, unsure of what I wanted to do, and planning to transfer back home. I didn’t feel confident in myself or my abilities, and I definitely didn’t expect where I would end up by senior year.
That started to change when I took Intro to Media Production with Prof. Golda. His teaching style pushed me to do more and think differently. I realized I was interested in production, social media, branding, and graphic design. For the first time, I felt like I had found something that actually fit me.
That’s what led me to declare my major in Strategic Communications, Public Relations, and Advertising.
What once felt like being “behind” quickly turned into capability, confidence, and motivation. I started getting more involved on campus, took on leadership roles in my sorority, and became more comfortable in my own abilities. I began to understand what kind of work I wanted to do and what I was capable of.
A lot of that growth came from getting more involved and putting myself in positions I never thought I would go for.
Taking on an executive council role in 2024 as Vice President of Programming for Zeta Tau Alpha challenged me in a way I did not expect. Planning events taught me that what people remember is the feeling they have at events. It made me more aware of the effort behind the scenes and how much intention goes into managing a team.
The following year, in 2025, being Vice President of Communications was one of the biggest turning points for me. I learned more about photography, social media, and being confident in what I do. That role completely changed how I see myself and my abilities.
Being responsible for how an entire chapter is represented taught me more than I expected. It allowed me to create a brand and showed me how far intention goes. I had to think about what people respond to, what works, and what doesn’t.
I also learned how to lead.
Holding that position pushed me to be more confident in my decisions, trust my ideas, and take responsibility for the outcome of my work. It forced me to grow quickly and step into a version of myself I wasn’t fully comfortable with yet.
Those experiences shaped who I am today.
By the time I joined The Spectrum in my senior year, I had already developed a strong foundation in communication, but the experience still changed how I think about writing.
At first, I thought strong writing was about sounding polished or making something interesting enough to read. But being an editor showed me that it comes down to clarity, accuracy, and intention.
As co-Arts & Entertainment editor, I spent this year not only writing but also editing other people’s work. That forced me to slow down and actually evaluate what made something effective. You start to notice what feels unclear, what is unnecessary, and what strengthens a story.
Strong writing is not about saying more. It is about saying the right things in the right way. Every sentence should serve a purpose. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t belong.
That mindset didn’t stay within The Spectrum.
Now, as a social media and creative intern for Uploft Interior Design, I use those same skills in a professional setting. Across everything I’ve done, the same idea continues to show up.
What seems effortless usually isn’t.
Looking back, the biggest thing I have learned is how to think more critically, trust myself, be more confident, and approach everything with more intention.
Because most of the time, it’s the small details that actually matter.
