Annie Krege 2023

 

Annie Krege

Major: English

Second Major: Film & Media Studies

GPA: 3.89

THESIS TOPIC

Virtual Reality: A tool for the disabled Lafayette population

PERSONAL STATEMENT

During my first day on campus, as a part of POSP, I was taught the phrase “active citizen.” An active citizen is someone whose community becomes a priority in values and life choices. This term has been a guiding principle for me over the past four years, as it has acted as an ideology that I have committed myself to embodying. To me, the Lafayette ideal is the epitome of an active citizen in every community that they are a part of.

Community is a cornerstone of Lafayette. Students immerse themselves in organizations and groups that give them a sense of belonging. As an active citizen, not only do I work to build community in various affiliations, but I aim to better them. I have recognized areas of growth within my communities and committed myself to making the changes necessary to leave each better than I found it.

Through my academic work, I’ve provided a platform for Lafayette’s disabled community to address Lafayette’s flaws and imagine the ways we can build a more accessible and inviting campus. Through my roles in Cadence and Alpha Phi, I’ve worked diligently to create a more fundamentally inclusive community. In Marquis Players and MOSAIC, I’ve worked to increase engagement with the Easton community, bringing the importance of connecting with the outside community to a wider range of students than ever before. My journey through POSP has helped me mold future active citizens who will continue to improve the communities they occupy. As my time as a Lafayette student comes to an end, I’m proud to know that I have had a hand in not only bettering my communities, but giving other students the tools and confidence to continue the hard work that others have begun before them to challenge this institution to become the best that it can be.

ACADEMIC ACTIVITY/AWARD

Honors Thesis Candidate-1year

Centered in the Film & Media Studies department, my honors thesis blends Disability Studies with virtual reality (VR) technology in an effort to envision a utopian Lafayette for disabled students. The goal of this project is to demonstrate the way VR can be a tool for the disabled community, while simultaneously suggesting ways to improve Lafayette can become a more inclusive and welcoming space for the students that inhabit the institution. Through my thesis, I have been able to partner with Lafayette’s Center for the Integration of Teaching, Learning, & Scholarship, with the goal of using my research in their Inclusive Teaching & Learning Training for faculty and staff. Additionally, we are hoping to co-hosting an exhibition of my research with a talkback about tangible applications for Lafayette administration, faculty and staff, and current and prospective students.

Howard Foundation Final Talent Pool-1 year

Selected as member of the 2023 Final Talent Pool for the T. Howard Foundation, a program that aims to increase the number of diverse and underrepresented students and young professionals in the media and entertainment industry. This program provided opportunities for professional development, networking, and mentorship.

Dean’s List-3 years

I have been on the dean’s list 6 of the 7 semesters I have completed thus far.

Constance Purkiss Kelly Scholarship– 1 year

Recipient of merit-based scholarship for the 2022-2023 academic year. This scholarship is awarded to “outstanding members” of the International Alpha Phi Fraternity based on a competitive application process.

Marina C. Petersen ’10 Study Abroad Scholarship-Winter Interim 2023

Need-based scholarship in honor of Marina C. Petersen that supports study abroad during an interim program.

McCurdy Family Scholarship for Internship Experiences-Summer 2022

Selected for summer stipend from the McCurdy Family Scholarship fund to supplement costs related to summer employment.

English Independent Study-.5 year

Completed an independent study that analyzed the intersection between critical race theory, authorial intent and reader response theory, using Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness as a case study.

Francis A. March Scholarship-4 years

Need-based scholarship awarded to a student demonstrating promise in creative writing or in the study of English or American literature.

Thomas H. McInnerney Scholarship-4 years

Need-based scholarship awarded to a student in the upper 2/5 of their class.

CAMPUS SERVICE ACTIVITY/AWARD

Marquis Players-4 years

Elected to the executive board for two year-long terms, serving as both Operations Manager and Vice President. Under my leadership, Marquis Players recentered its mission as a nonprofit organization, increasing the number of fundraising events and opportunities for the organization to engage with the community. This included implementing a suggested donation at our fall showcase, as well as organizing the first ever Rivalry Cabaret with Lehigh Univeristy’s drama society. Additionally, I led the restructuring of our organization’s bylaws in order to create more cohesion and efficiency amongst the board and general body members. Further, I implemented a mentorship program that increased the engagement of Marquis Players’ general body. I was directly involved as a cast member with three of Marquis Players’ spring musicals. During the years I was not on the board, I was an active participant in the general body, volunteering at fundraisers and participating in a multitude of performances.

Senior Class Gift Committee-1 year

Selected and served as class representative for the Senior Class Gift Committee, which encourages seniors to make contributions to our class gift. Together, the group advocated for our class’ gift to support the Office of Accessibility, PASA,  DEI initiatives, and the Student Emergency Fund.

AOL-1.5 years

Served as an Ambassador of Lafayette. This included giving tours to prospective students as well as participating in programs such as Leopard-for-a-day, outreach via Lafayette Landing, and emailing and calling prospective students to answer questions about life at Lafayette.

Landis Social Media Committee-1 year

Served on Landis Social Media Committee, planning and executing campus outreach for Landis Center events and programming via social media platforms including Instagram, Facebook, and Linkedin.

Lafayette Votes-.5 year

Served as Landis representative on the Lafayette Votes Committee during the fall of 2020. During my time on the committee, we worked to increase voter turnout of Lafayette students in the 2020 election. With our efforts, 82.9% of Lafayette students voted in the 2020 presidential election!

Relay for Life-.5 year

Served as Sponsorship Lead for Lafayette’s Relay for Life executive board. This event was canceled due to the pandemic.

 

COMMUNITY SERVICE

MOSAIC-4 years

During my freshman year, I volunteered with a number of programs through MOSAIC. These included Art for the Young at Heart (AFYAH), a weekly companionship program intended to give students an opportunity to participate in art therapy practices with dementia patients at the Gardens of Easton, YMCA School Age Child Care (SACC), a weekly program that has a focus on tutoring and mentoring young school-aged children, and the Pen Pal Program, which pairs college and elementary school students as pen pals in an effort to increase student literacy, typing ability, and provide mentorship. Unfortunately, AFYAH and YMCA SACC were not revived following the pandemic, but I have continued with the Pen Pal Program. At the end of my freshman year, I applied and was selected as a Pard Projects Program Coordinator on MOSAIC staff. In my role, I organized fundraisers for Second Harvest Food Bank, Safe Harbor, and ProJect Easton raising over a combined $5,000. I was then promoted to the Director of Pard Projects. In this role, I planned and executed the first everLaFarmapalooza, which was a day of service dedicated to the environment. Volunteers spent time at LaFarm or made compost tumblers with the Society of Environmental Engineers and Scientists. During the holiday season, I led my team in organizing Holiday Helpers, fulfilling over 300 holiday gift requests and raising over $2,300 for the Easton Area Neighborhood Center and St. Luke’s Nurse Family Partnership. Additionally, my team and I planned two blood drives, including a Rivalry Blood Drive where Lafayette was awarded the Life Cup Trophy by donating more units than Lehigh. I was promoted to MOSAIC Leadership Coordinator for the following year. In this role, I oversee all of the weekly volunteering opportunities and large-scale events that fall under MOSAIC, as well as lead a staff of 19 students. I have implemented more opportunities for education and reflection within programming, in addition to direct service. Further, I’ve enacted structural changes related to the organization of teams and programming to make MOSAIC more efficient and impactful in community outreach. I’ve also established new methods of volunteer recruitment, in tandem with helping grow the presence of Landis on Lafayette’s campus and beyond.

Pre-Orientation Service Program-4 years

Applied and was selected for the 2019 POSP first-year cohort, where I was a part of the Kids in the Community Camp (KIC). I served on the executive board the following three years.  In my role as Director of First-Year Students (FYS), I marketed the program to incoming students and participated in the selection process. Because the program was moved to a virtual format due to the pandemic, I worked to create and maintain a sense of community for the first-year cohort, as well as provide mentorship and guidance throughout the semester, helping the first-year cohort connect to the Lafayette community, despite the distance. The following year, I served as the Co-Director of the KIC, where I led a staff of six upperclassmen and 11 FYS in the restructuring of the camp. Thisrestructuring allowed us to engage more deeply with the community by doing our service at Paxinosa, rather than on Lafayette’s campus. This year, I served as the Executive Co-Director. Under my leadership, we added interviews to our application process, as well as altered the selection criteria, to be more equitable for applicants. We led a staff of 25 upperclassmen in the planning and execution of 4 community-based programs, as well as guided a cohort of 40 FYS students as they transitioned to Lafayette’s campus and became immersed in their newfound community. The program effectively teaches the FYS cohort the importance of holistic community engagement and how to be an active citizen. This year, my co-director and I altered POSP’s format to implement more opportunities for reflection and education, as well as to more mindfully expose the FYS to the systemic issues that the community-based programs aim to address.

Landis Summer Fellow-Summer 2021

Served as one of two Landis Summer Fellows during the Summer of 2021. In this role, I helped coordinate logistics for POSP, acting as a liaison between the Landis Center professional staff and the executive and camp directors. Additionally, I interned part time with Easton Garden Works, which coordinates six community gardens within Easton. In this role, I worked in the gardens weekly, as well as at the Veggies in the Community (VIC) farmstand. VIC was a program designed to build community strength by providing affordable, fresh produce to the West Ward of Easton.

America Reads-3.5 years

Worked as an America Reads tutor at Cheston Elementary and March Elementary. I tutored a variety of grade levels from kindergarten through fifth grade in an effort to provide mentorship to elementary-aged students, as well as academic support. Eleanor Winkey Prize|Spring 2023|This prize is awarded annually to a senior selected by the Landis Center for Community Engagement who has been committed to service and the residents of the Easton Area Community.

Service Above Self Hoff Award-Spring 2022

This award recognizes a student who best exemplifies the qualities of caring and concern for others through participation in service activities. This active citizen is committed to discovering the root cause of social issues and supports solution-based initiatives with significant amounts of personal time.

Landis Active Citizen-Fall 2021

This award annually recognizes several faculty, students, staff, and community partners who demonstrate individual commitment, a common purpose, and active citizenship as key tenets of their identity. They display that embodying these key tenets can both help and heal the world.

Easton Area Children’s Home Volunteer-.5 year

Through my sorority, I volunteered weekly at the Easton Area Children’s Home. This program provides mentorship to young women who are unable to remain in their home or origin for a myriad of reasons. Our programming included events such as bracelet making, cookie decorating, karaoke nights, and more.

Volunteer of the Year-Spring 2020

This award is annually awarded to a first-year student who has shown exemplary commitment to the Easton Community.

Alpha Phi Omega-1 year

Initiated into APO, the alpha chapter of the national service fraternity. As a part of APO, I volunteered at a plethora of one-time events, as well as participated in fellowship opportunities. Ialso took a leadership role in organizing the my pledge class project, where we fundraised for Third Street Alliance.

SPECIAL INTEREST ACTIVITY/AWARD

Cadence A Cappella-4 years

Served as Music Director for 5 of 8 semesters of my time in the group.  Under my leadership, Cadence evolved our audition criteria and audition outreach efforts to recruit a more diverse and inclusive pool of potential new members, as well as diversified our song selection to include a wider array of styles. This has created a tremendous shift in the dynamic of the group to create a more committed and welcoming community.

Alpha Phi-3 years

Throughout my time in Alpha Phi, I have served as the Director of Continuous Open Bidding, the Director of Formal Recruitment, and the Vice President of Membership Recruitment. In these roles, I worked to make the recruitment process more inclusive and equitable both within my chapter and externally. Within my chapter, this included creating alternatives to monetary fines and restructuring the internal recruitment process to benefit both current and potential new members of my chapter. Externally, I helped refine the panhellenic recruitment rules in order to lessen the restriction placed on potential new members. In addition to these positions, I have served on the slating committee, helping select our most recent executive board, as well as twice as a pledge class representative on the bylaws committee, where we altered the bylaws of our chapter with the goal of increasing the accountability of our chapter members. I also served on the Red Dress Gala committee, where I helped plan and execute our largest philanthropic event of the year. For the last three years, I have been an active member of my chapter, attending and engaging in academic and DEI programming, as well as sisterhood and philanthropy events.

Astra Books for Young Readers Marketing Intern-1 year

In addition to my course load, I have worked as a marketing intern at Astra Books for Young Readers, a publishing company based in NYC, since summer of 2022. In my role, I support the marketing team in content creation, award submissions, market research, and more!

WJRH-1 year

Co-hosted a radio show for each semester of involvement. “Happy Hour” (Fall 2022) consisted of a variety of music programming and conversation. “EVERYTHING AND NOTHING AT THE SAME TIME” (Spring 2023) consists of both academic and casual discourse about cinema.

Arts Society-3 years

Acted as general body member for each year of involvement. Attended programming and participated in events centered around the arts.

Lafayette College Theater Department-.5 year

In fall of 2020, I was a cast member of the college theater department’s production of The Summoning of Everyman. After a semester of rehearsals, we performed three shows via zoom.

Earth Friendly Fits-2 years

In the fall of 2022, I opened my own small business via Etsy, where I sold clothing that I upcycled in an effort to reduce the pollution of the fashion industry. My business remained open for two years while I continued to make, market, and sell upcycled items.

Lafayette Fashion Society-2 years

Served on the inaugural executive board of the Lafayette Fashion Society as Secretary. Additionally, I assisted in the launch of the LFS blog, which provided the opportunity for students to publish visual and written pieces on topics relating to fashion.

The Women’s Network-.5 year

General body member of newly emerged campus organization The Women’s Network, which is the largest collegiate women’s networking organization in North America. This organization works to cultivate and celebrate ambitious women by connecting members to industry leaders, professional development resources, and career opportunities.