Major: Media Communication Studies with a minor in Film Studies.
Grade: Senior
Hometown: West Palm Beach, FL
Her Campus (HC): You’re heavily involved in many organizations across campus, what are those organizations and what position do you have in them?
Selena Ponton (SP): In Her Campus FSU, I am one of the Jr. Social Media Directors! I work with both the Twitter and Facebook teams. I was the Recruitment Chair for Lady Spirithunters, so I helped with the planning behind welcoming the new Osceola Class. Lastly, I’m the Historian for Surfrider FSU! I run our Instagram account.
HC: What do each of these campus organizations mean to you personally? How have they affected your time here at FSU?
SP: In my first year at FSU, I was joining clubs and organizations where I felt like I was fighting to make friends. I ended up only staying in those organizations because I had leadership positions in them, not because I actually was enjoying them. Being in Her Campus, Surfrider, and LSH, I have truly made friendships for life. They are the first organizations on campus that made me feel accepted and that I truly had a place where I belonged on campus to make a difference! It’s an amazing feeling to love the work I’m doing in these organizations while being surrounded by people who encourage me and challenge me.
HC: What inspired or motivated you to be a part of these clubs?
SP: I chose to come to FSU in the first place because I wanted to be on a campus with a spirited campus and student life, so LSH was the perfect place for me to spread Seminole spirit and take part in community service events while making strong female friendships at the same time. In my sophomore year, my close friend Calista introduced me to Her Campus. I mainly joined Her Campus because I wanted an outlet to write whatever I wanted for an FSU publication, but it turned out to be so much more than I expected in the best way. In Surfrider, I joined the chapter because my friends asked me to help out with social media and I wanted to become more involved with environmentally-related initiatives on campus.
HC: Seeing as you have a high position in three main organizations, how did you personally climb the ranks of them and how has being in leadership affected you?
SP: In Her Campus, I made a point to go to every meeting I could, write consistently at my best, and make friends with whoever I could talk to. Getting as involved in Her Campus as possible was honestly the key – joining Social Team taught me so much and allowed me to grow within the chapter even more. In my role now, it makes me so happy to grow the Social Team and teach the girls how to use social media as a tool to connect with others and get their writing seen by a bigger audience.
For Surfrider, I got really lucky because the FSU chapter was created by some of my best friends! They knew my experience with social media and asked me to be their Historian, so there was no way I would’ve turned it down. Surfrider has been one of the organizations that has changed my life the most. I am so much more environmentally conscious and politically active than I ever have been because Surfrider gives me the opportunity to learn skills I couldn’t get anywhere else.
In Lady Spirithunters, I made it my mission to take advantage of every opportunity I could before I graduated, even if I didn’t feel qualified. I have so much love for LSH and wanted to spread that love to other empowered women on campus, so I decided to go for Recruitment Chair! I was so glad to have a bigger piece of responsibility in LSH and see how my efforts directly impacted our organization’s growth. It was also the most satisfying feeling to meet girls face to face every day and see how excited they were about applying – it just made me work even harder and love my position even more.
HC: How do you manage your time so well between Lady Spirithunters, HerCampus, and Surfrider?
SP: Time management has never been my strong suit, but my planner has become my best friend. I have a job, two internships, and classes to also consider, so it’s not easy, but it’s definitely manageable. I just had to learn to prioritize my tasks by making charts and lists, reducing my procrastination, and making sure that I don’t take on anything that overlaps with my set schedule!
HC: The organizations you’re a part of are mainly focused toward female empowerment, how has being around so many strong, hardworking women impacted your time at FSU?
SP: At my internships, I have two female supervisors. At my job, my boss is female. Her Campus and Lady Spirithunters are female-led organizations. Even for Surfrider, our board is almost entirely made up of women, so I am constantly surrounded by passionate and ambitious female energy. By being a part of these organizations, I have become so empowered. The women that I surround myself with have never made me feel that there is nothing I can’t do because they show me that I can. They teach me new skills, let me know about new opportunities, and inspire me to work harder and strive to be a better version of myself.
HC: Finally, how has being a part of these organizations prepared you for your future and/or influenced what you’re going to do in the future?
SP: One of the best parts about my leadership positions is that none of them overlap too much. I write, I work on social media, I work on blog posts, I’m learning web design and development, I learn skills about being more politically involved, I learned how to code, and so much more. Every person I have met in my organizations have inspired me to learn something new or to step out of my comfort zone. I’ve never felt narrowed down to one specific industry or field – I am constantly learning and improving my skills every day by coming up with new strategies and ideas. Because of this, I am more determined and eager to learn, so I’ve been strongly considering my Master’s degree and venturing into other fields/industries that I didn’t think I was cut out for before.
Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest!