Hi Everyone!!!! As you all know, I am Joanna… First thing that I can tell you about me is that I get so annoyed when I am called Joanne. You pronounce my name with the na sound at the end. Therefore when people are trying to remember my name I usually tell them it rhymes with banana. Anyways, I’m a 19 year old (turning 20 on November 30) Junior who’s majoring in Graphic Communication and I love it. Besides that I’m a half Salvadorian and half Dominican girl with crazy curly hair that represents my life. Fun fact… I changed my laugh because my old was so embarrassing. (True Story:: Once my friends and I went out for dinner to celebrate the end of finals. I began laughing and a friend who didn’t know my laugh, really thought I was dying.) I am told by close friends that I am the sweetest person with the cutest personality they know. If this is true, I don’t know but I can admit that I am determined to be positive and happy even if I’m not. I try to have a smile on my face even if things are going wrong and if things go wrong, as they sometimes do (I feel like that line is part of a song) then I just deal with it. I also tend to smile for no reason whatsoever.
My top 3 concerns for this semester is…
- Time-Managing – I am teaching two FRO classes as a peer mentor, I’m working in the Office of Student Life, I have 5 classes (2 of which I have to dedicate hours outside of class time) from Monday to Saturday, I am in a sorority and even though I became inactive I still try to be around when I have time, I don’t want to kill my social life, and I have a family that asks me to go to family events like every weekend. My concern is trying to NOT stress myself out.
- My freshmen students – Not only you guys, but my past, present, and future freshmen seminar students. I want each and everyone of my students to have a good semester…. I want them to get good grades and to pass freshmen seminar. But I also want all my students to have fond memories of Baruch College. I want everyone to find a niche here in school or a friend to hang out with, attend USG parties, get active in clubs, become leaders, gain more confidence, find your passion, and graduate with a good G.P.A…. and get an AWESOME job. My concern, I guess, is that they don’t try to make the most of their first semester which in all honestly is beyond my control.
- I guess my last concern for this semester is finding an internship for next semester or researching which country to study abroad for the summer. Even though its only plans, every day is one day less and I feel like I’m running out of time.
I am beginning my third year here at Baruch College and I am definitely not the same girl who entered Mason Hall for Convocation in 2009. I knew I was going to change but I didn’t expect how much. When I began in Fall 2009, I was really naive. Two years of Baruch College made me into a mature adult. I went through a lot, pledging a sorority, becoming a student leader, getting As and Bs, failing classes, realizing that business was not for me, finding out that my passion was in the arts, and trying to find out who I am which honestly… I’m still trying to figure out.