King’s College takeover

2015 GNA Alum Jackie Victor, Noelle Race, and Eryn Rackham are making their mark!

Kings+College+takeover

Greater Nanticoke Area often creates successful and well-rounded graduates who have continually demonstrated the positive impact GNA has had on them during their high school years. Three GNA alumni in particular, have gone above and beyond their expectations of college once they took their march across the auditorium’s stage. Noelle Race, Eryn Rackham, and Jaclyn Victor, who all graduated from the class of ’15, all hold office at King’s College amidst their freshmen year.

What inspired you to run for your place in student government?

Noelle: “Before beginning classes at King’s, I’d gotten an email from a women named Megan, who was holding a six week seminar on emerging leaders. I signed up and went through the seminar, and one week the Dean of Students had asked me if I was going to run for a position in our student government, and if not, what I wanted to get out of the seminar. Upon hearing about the student government, I got excited, partly because I knew Jackie was going to run as well; I thought it would be so amazing if we both won and were able to continue what we did back in high school.”

Eryn: “To be honest, I’ve never seen myself in a political setting, but always knew I wanted to get involved during my college experience, for a multitude of reasons. What inspired me most to run for Student Government was my best friend, Jaclyn Victor. I know that sounds cliche, but it’s true. During our senior year, I helped her with her presidency, and through this, I saw how hard her job really was. Despite the difficulties she faced, it made her a much stronger individual.”

Jaclyn: “I was inspired to run for Student Government because I had such an amazing experience as Senior Class President while attending GNA. I knew that it would be a great way to get involved in the campus community while doing something I am passionate about.”

What skills did you acquire from GNA that you are going to use while “in office?”

Noelle: “GNA gave me more skills than I could have ever imagined; I prospered in areas of communication in a social sense, since I was thrown out in front of the whole school seconds before the start of the Senior vs. Teachers game last year, which was held by the spirit committee. You won’t realize this until you graduate, but your teachers from high school give you a lot of skills and advice, and it’s for a reason. One thing most of the teachers say that isn’t true is, “Life gets better after high school.” Everyone, no, it doesn’t. Enjoy every second of high school, and live it up, because it’s taken away in one day: graduation day.”

Eryn: “Throughout my years at GNA, I have learned many things, and have gained many skills from my teachers. Mr. Litch, in particular, taught me to never lose hope, and to never give up. Once he told me, “It is sweet victory to prove someone wrong.” Mr. Stetz always taught me that it’s okay to have fun, and to never hide the real you, because, “what’s the fun in that, bruh?” Mrs. Jefferies, and Mr. Collins taught me that it’s okay to have a weird laugh, because it’s part of your personality; they also encouraged me to take risks, even if someone makes you want to give up and cry. As for the skills I gained, well, I will use them every day while I’m in office.” 

Jaclyn: “Although I am still developing my leadership skills, I learned so much from my time at GNA. I learned that a good leader has to put the interest of those they represent higher than their own. I learned to greatly improve my writing and communication skills from working on our school newspaper, The GNA Insider. I learned that you will never be able to please everyone, so you have to do what you believe is right. I learned how to effectively work with others in order to get things accomplished.”

What type of activities does your position entail?

Noelle: “Spending an hour in the SGA office, attending meetings, typing, filing, and submitting. I haven’t done one of the last few things, but I’ll catch up with everyone sooner or later.’

Eryn: “As Vice President, I’m sort of like the President’s side kick. I help Jaclyn with holding meetings, fundraisers, giving reports to the board, and serving in her place for when she can’t be there.”

Jaclyn: “My position entails delivering a President’s report at every student government meeting, working with my fellow class officers to plan socials, fundraisers, and service projects,and holding one office hour a week in the student government office.”

What was the campaigning process like?

Noelle: “I made flyers, but never got to hanging them up; whoops. Although, I did talk to all the students in my classes and after a week or so I figured I was the only person running for secretary, so I really/kind of won by default.”

Eryn: “It was very intimidating, because when you’re competing for a position that many other people want, you start to feel like you should just give up. Although I didn’t give up in the end, our treasurer that also ran for Vice President tied with me in the race, which was the first time it has ever happened in King’s history.” 

Jaclyn: “The campaigning process was very similar to high school, actually. The candidates had to complete a petition with 50 signatures and had the option to put up posters. I, of course, used my signature slogan: “How Can You Lose With a Victor in Office?”

How did you feel about the fact that three GNA alumni were voted into office at Kings?

Noelle: “I was really excited because we all knew each other, so we didn’t need to break the ice; we were able to just jump right into things. Noting made me happier than receiving that email, and literally two hours later we were in our first SGA meeting.”

Eryn: “To be honest, scared. Not in a bad way, but since we all know each other, we all know what our weaknesses are, and that can make it difficult to keep priorities in line. I know we all will do a grand job in our positions and I hope we make King’s and GNA proud.”

Jaclyn:  “I am very proud of the fact that three GNA alumni hold positions in student government. It makes our school look good and I believe we represent GNA well. We worked together on various projects last year and I hope we can achieve the same success.”

Did you hold office while attending GNA? Any similarities? Differences?

Noelle: “While in high school, I lost senior race for class secretary. During the year somehow I became the ‘plus one’ officer for the senior class. There were no perks to that job other then being with friends on a day to day basis, and the awesome company of Mrs. Marshall and Mrs. Makarczyk. Some similarities I have noticed are the number of meetings we have to attend, and one big difference would be the population we have to cover.

Eryn: “I unfortunately did not hold officer during high school.” 

Jaclyn: “Yes, I was Senior Class President. The only similarity is planning events and fundraisers. One major difference is the size of the class. I went from a graduating class of 179 to a class of 782 students. There is an extensive approval process when it comes to fundraising and socials.

Do you have any advice for graduating seniors who may be interested in running for student government? 

Noelle: “Go for the position, because you get to meet all kinds of different people all over the college and I feel like you have more of  a voice while in office. Apparently, there’s dinner at the end, too!”

Eryn: “I have a lot of advice, but unfortunately that would take up the whole edition of this newspaper. So, the advice I’m going to give to any seniors who may be interested in student government, is that I say go for it and don’t think twice about it. It’s a great position to have, and an honor to be part of. It also teaches you many leadership roles and gives you the confidence you need to have throughout life. Never let anyone tell you what your abilities are.” 

Jaclyn: “I would tell graduating students to definitely consider running for office. It is a great position to include on your resume. an opportunity to refine leadership skills, and a way to meet new people.”