Name: Sara/Lola Bakhtiar
Hometown: Parsippany, NJ
School/Year: Fordham College Rose Hill, Class of 2018
Major/Minor: Double Major in International Studies and Middle East Studies
Campus Involvement: Resident Assistant in the Salice-Conley Residence Hall, Marketing Chairperson for the Fordham Career Ambassadors, and general member of the USG Committee on International Integration
1. What made you want to become an RA at Fordham? As a transfer student my sophomore year, I had the opportunity to live with three seniors in off-campus housing, one of whom was my RA. She was the first person I met at Fordham, and one of most interesting people I know. She was able to help me with any and every question I had about classes, extracurriculars, and life in general. I knew that I wanted to help my peers just as she helped me and several others, so I applied for the position once I received the application.
2. What’s your favorite part about being an RA? My favorite part about being an RA is forming bonds with students I otherwise would not have gotten the chance to know during my years at Fordham. As a junior in an upperclassmen residence hall, I get to work with and assist mostly seniors. Having my residents show genuine appreciation for the programs that I spend time planning and organizing is a great feeling.
Sara and her fellow RA’s
3. How did you get your nickname “Lola?” My brother is 3 years younger than me and when he was really little he had a pretty bad lisp, so he couldn’t pronounce his S’s or R’s so he just resorted to calling me “Lola.” My parents started calling me it too, and then my friends at school, and since then it kind of stuck.
4. What is your favorite thing about Fordham? Our campus is beautiful. I’ve been here for almost two years now and I still find myself stopping and snapping pictures of the changing leaves in the fall, the snow surrounding the academic buildings in the winter, and Eddie’s and Keating in the spring!
5. What has been your favorite college memory so far? My favorite college memory was Spring Weekend last year. Being friends with mostly other transfer students last year, we were excited to experience all of Fordham’s spring events for the first time.
6. If you could change one thing about your college experience, what would it be and why? I always regret not experiencing my freshman year at Fordham with the rest of my class. Since I’ve been at Fordham, I’ve tried my best to get as involved on campus as possible, and I know that if I started my college experience here 3 years ago I could be doing even more. Still, I’m happy to have accomplished as much as I have so far, and to have met all the awesome people that I have since I got here last year.
7. What is your dream job? My dream job would involve me working with an NGO or humanitarian organization. I’m passionate about social justice and humanitarian rights for all people. Specifically, I am interested in the protection of children in armed conflict areas. I hope to find a career path that allows me to alleviate some of the suffering that these regions and people face in their day-to-day lives.
8. What show are you currently watching on Netflix? I’ve probably started and never finished about a million, but currently I’m obsessed with Black Mirror, Shameless, and I’m rewatching Stranger Things (because it was just that good).
9. Favorite band/artist? The Strokes
10. What is one thing people would be surprised to learn about you? I’m a first-generation American citizen; both of my parents were born and grew up in Kabul, Afghanistan and moved to the United States later in their lives.