Board Reflections

BY IRIS ZHAO

I’ve been on USWIB board for the past two years, and during this time, I’ve been lucky enough to hold the External Relations Co-Director position as well as be a Study Abroad Liaison and now be a part of Content Committee. There’s countless positions on USWIB’s board with wide-ranging responsibilities. This means that there’s opportunities that suit everyone! I reached out to members of the board to learn more about their positions and hear what advice they had to give, and here’s what they had to say:

• Conference Director - Tiffany W.

  I’ve been Conference Director for the past year. We started planning for conference in late summer and held the event in February! My favorite part has definitely been the actual Conference itself. Attendance was great and it was exciting seeing everyone engaged and involved in events. Even the preparation leading up to Conference was fun because everyone from attendees to board was really hyped. Also, finally seeing months of hard-work turn into reality was definitely a sweet moment. It was definitely eye-opening to see what our team and board could accomplish when working together. The event would not have been possible without everyone’s help, and I am so grateful for everyone who pitched in to make the event an amazing experience for everyone attending, from the students to professionals.

• Conference Corporate Relations Chair - Kaylee Y.

  I have been with the Conference team as the Corporate Relations Chair since last May. Looking back, it has been a wonderful year! My favorite memory was definitely the Conference and all our efforts leading up to it. The week before Conference was so crazy that we stayed and worked at Bobst past midnight; I want to thank all the board volunteers who came to help us! I would say that being a team player not only makes great accomplishments happen, but also comes with friendships. It’s great to know that even in difficult times your teammates will back you up!

• Conference Logistics Chair - Hannah L.

  I’ve been Conference Logistics Chair for the 2022-2023 academic year. My favorite memory was definitely Conference itself; seeing everything we had worked so hard on come to fruition was really amazing to see and then celebrating with the Conference team afterwards was really fun as well. Something I’ve learned that I didn’t expect was how big the USWIB network is. We had an incredible amount of students, professionals, and alumni and I really got to see how everyone involved with USWIB can learn from each other.

• DEI Co-Director - Sahana I.

  I’ve been in my position since January 2023. My favorite memory has been the Pride Corp x DEI alumni panel! The panelists were amazing and the turnout of students from both clubs made for a successful meeting. Plus, we had enough delicious cookies and pizza for everyone :) I learned that there’s a lot of thought that goes into choosing DEI topics and a lot of different ways to approach each topic. So, we brainstorm a lot to narrow it down!

• SOCIAL CO-DIRECTOR - NICOLE F.

  I joined the board in Spring 2023, my current Freshman spring semester. My favorite USWIB memory was planning the Central Park social at Sheep Meadow. It was so gratifying to see all community members get together in an outdoor, fun setting without the typical T-201 professional atmosphere. The event was a success - it was a sunny day, the food was great, and we all had a lot of nice conversations. I hope the next Social Co-Directors plan out more of these outdoor events to make the club even more united. The biggest takeaway I had as the Social Co-Director at USWIB was the overarching importance of fostering good relationships among the club members. I found through my experiences in planning social events that it is key to promote interaction between underclassmen and upperclassmen, not only to exchange advice, but also to help flourish relationships that extend beyond the class environment.

  My last piece of advice: encourage members to apply to join the board as soon as they are ready, even if they are still a Freshman. I was not particularly confident that I would get the position as a Freshman, but I am so happy that I did and how well it turned out!

• SOCIAL CO-DIRECTOR - ALYSSA Z.

  I have been Social Co-Director for a semester now and am returning to the role for next semester. I was also on Content Committee the semester before! I’ve loved planning and executing events that people have been enjoying and creating memories at. For the USWIB giveaway, people had to comment a favorite memory from USWIB this semester and a lot of people referenced events that I ran! It's really rewarding to see that everyone has been having as much fun at our events as I had hoped when planning them. I hadn't had much experience at all with event-planning before I took on this role. I have learned a lot about brainstorming and tapping into creativity to come up with unique ideas, and also am much better at working out the inner logistics now. I think it's most important to plan events that you would want to attend yourself.

• OPERATIONS CO-DIRECTOR - KATHERINE C.

  I’ve been an Operations Co-Director since the fall semester. My favorite memory as part of Ops has been getting to know and help out other board members! One of the key responsibilities is getting food for the general meetings, but a big part of our role is also just helping out E-board or board wherever needed. I’ve been able to get to know a lot of other board members when I’m coordinating logistics for their events, and it’s definitely helped me become more knowledgeable about what goes on behind-the-scenes and how different events come to life.

• OPERATIONS CO-DIRECTOR - SYDNEY M.

  I started this role at the beginning of this semester, January 2023. My favorite part of my role is recapping my week with my fellow Co-Directors as we transport the food for our weekly meetings. This role reinforced my opinions on how supportive women are and how this community continues to uplift others and provide amazing advice and friendship!

• OPERATIONS CO-DIRECTOR - SNEHA R.

  I began my position as one of the Co-Directors of Operations at the beginning of this semester, and I joined USWIB last semester! My favorite part of my role on the USWIB board has been the opportunity to connect with and learn from the amazing women who are part of the organization. As a freshman, joining the board was a bit intimidating, but I quickly found a supportive community of mentors who were willing to answer my many questions and guide me as I navigated college life. Some of my favorite memories have been the times when we've come together as a board for socials and events; one of my favorites was after the flagship Conference when we all took pictures with each other. It's incredibly rewarding to see the impact that we can have when we work together and support one another. One thing that I've learned from my role as the Operations Co-Director of USWIB is the importance of adaptability and being able to think on my feet. There have been times when unexpected situations have arisen, such as a last-minute change in catering or a sudden change in the schedule. This experience has taught me the value of being flexible and responsive, and has helped me to develop my problem-solving skills.

• MARKETING CO-DIRECTOR - EMILY W.

  I’m going into my second semester as the co-marketing director! I started my Freshman Spring and I’ve loved every bit of it! My favorite memory was coming up with and researching the giveaway prizes! I learned a lot about women-owned businesses in Soho. I feel like I understand so much more about marketing techniques, making clear material, and how to use new software.

• CONTENT DIRECTOR - SCARLETT K.

  I have been in the Content Committee for two years and have been Director for one year. My favorite part of my role is what I get to learn from my team. Our “lifestyle” blogs usually involve NYU/Stern/NYC tips and tricks that have helped me! I’ll often try the food spots or even study spots that committee members recommend in their blogs, and they’re always great places. Something I have gained from being in Content Committee that I did not expect is better writing skills. Blog writing is very different from academic or business writing. Your writing has to be short, sweet and quick to the point. Practicing writing like this has allowed me to write more clearly and effectively in my academic papers.

• STUDY ABROAD CO-DIRECTOR/DEI CO-DIRECTOR - SABRINA S.

  I'm a Study Abroad Co-Director with the wonderful Clea this semester, and I was a DEI Co-Director with my queen, Trisha, for a year before this. My favorite memory was a DEI Dialogue we held on Sexuality where I brought in my professor for Human Sexuality, Dr. Zhana Vrangalova. The entire time I was just so scared that people would be uncomfortable or even worse, bored. However, people were engaged and we had a lot of fun during that event where my professor answered every question that you can imagine. More recently, I spoke to a First Year who told me that it was their favorite event this year because it made them more comfortable talking about sexuality with their friends and they found it really interesting and fun! It made my heart full to hear that :) A huge takeaway from DEI is that being uncomfortable will make you more comfortable. That was my motto when I was the DEI Director because my goal each meeting was to push people out of their comfort zones to open some minds. Since I kept preaching it, I tried to put myself in uncomfortable situations (like taking that Human Sexuality Course) as often as I could, and I found that I had so many unique experiences and I learned about new perspectives because of that. I think this lesson also goes along with Study Abroad because you learn and grow so much by putting yourself in a new place and experiencing new cultures (two things which can be uncomfortable because they're different).

• STUDY ABROAD CO-DIRECTOR - CLEA L.

  I’ve been in USWIB since freshman year, was on Content Committee sophomore spring, and been Study Abroad Co-Director since junior fall. I’ve loved connecting with people, especially my freshman year as I was remote and it was really helpful to be able to have that supportive contact. As for my role, I really loved being abroad so being able to cultivate that content with other liaisons for USWIB has been really rewarding, and we’ve had so many new locations this semester. I really gained a new appreciation for managing content and integrating themes for USWIB and other organizations as well through leading study abroad content.

• EXTERNAL RELATIONS CO-DIRECTOR - ELIZABETH G.

  I’ve been an External Relations Co-Director for a semester. My favorite memory was definitely Conference. It was a great experience to meet professionals and uplift women with my peers and board members. Through my role, I’ve learned about aspects of what being an MBA student entails. Since we speak with SWIB regularly, I learned a lot about the masters program which I didn’t expect to take away from my role.

• PROFESSIONAL CO-DIRECTOR - TIFFANY H.

  I've been in my current position for a semester. My favorite memory was our last LGP, Mental Health During Recruiting. I specifically made it a lot more interactive instead of a slide deck and a lecture like usual. It was really fun seeing everyone get to know each other and laugh. I think that's something that I'm going to do more of in the fall semester or at least try to make it more workshop-y and interactive while informative.

A huge thank you to the women who gave all this insight! If you’re interested in any specific positions, don’t be afraid to reach out to learn more! You can reach out for coffee chats with all the board members on the USWIB website.