Her Campus New Haven had the opportunity to interview one of UNH’s most involved students! Find out more about Val Luutran below!
FAST FACTS:
Hometown: Holtsville, NY (Long Island)
Majors: Forensic Science and Chemistry
Minor: Business Management
Relationship Status: Taken
Fun Fact: Val was a pageant baby and in a Trix commercial
Her Campus: What are you involved in on campus?
Val Luutran: I am the Special Events Committee Head for Phi Sigma Sigma, Greek Week Coordinator for All Greek Council, and one of the Student Orientation Co-Chairs! I am also a member of the Honors Program, Alpha Lambda Delta First-Year Honor Society, Gamma Sigma Alpha Greek Honor Society, and SCOPE.
HC: What has been the best class you have taken while at UNH?
VL: My favorite class was Global Solutions to Sustainability with Professor Aktas. The class was so cool because we learned about how the world is kind of going downhill, environmentally, but then we learned ways to combat it. We also did term projects and some of them were amazing — one student did a project where he used crystals to harness energy from stagnant air! I loved learning all these new and crazy ways to help save the planet, and it was incredibly interesting to be in a class with students of all different majors.
HC: What is your favorite UNH event?
VL: I’m going to shamelessly self promote and say Greek Week! I think it’s an awesome way for Greeks to have fun and show off our amazing Greek unity, but still have the opportunity for some friendly competition.
HC: What are your plans post-graduation?
VL: I hope to earn my Masters in Higher Education or Student Affairs, then work in Student Activities! I have also been considering taking time off to gain more professional experience in the field.
HC: What is your dream job?
VL: My dream job is the director of Fraternity and Sorority Life at a large private school. I have been interested in working in Higher Education/Student Affairs since working as an Orientation Leader last summer. Student activities are my favorite part of school and I think that they truly embody everything you should be getting out of your undergraduate experience outside of academics.
HC: What was it like attending Northeast Greek Leadership Association?
VL: Attending NGLA was one of the most amazing opportunities I have had thus far. Because I was a member of the Student Staff, I couldn’t attend the educational programming or Institute sessions, but I feel that I got so much more out of it by being able to network with the Professional Staff and even my fellow student staff members. As someone aspiring to work in HESA (Higher Education & Student Affairs), it was very helpful to be able to network with and get advice from professionals in the field and even older students! I was the youngest by 2 years of everyone on staff, so it’ll be really helpful to have contacts who are graduating from grad school right around the time I’ll be going into grad school. The conference, overall, just really helped me solidify my interest in working in HESA because I was able to meet so many incredible people and see the power Student Affairs really has in shaping the college experience.
HC: You were an OL (orientation leader) last summer. What was that like?
VL: I am so blessed to have been able to be an Orientation Leader last summer. I was able to build amazing relationships not only with my students and the Student Staff, but also the Professional Staff in OSA. They have been great resources for me in helping me plan my path to working in HESA. This year, I was lucky enough to be hired as one of two Student Orientation Co-Chairs. I am so excited to build even closer relationships with the Professional Staff and expand my professional experience. I am a little disappointed I won’t be able to work with first-year students and play super fun icebreakers, but I am excited to be able to influence the incoming class on a less direct, but overall larger scale.
HC: If you could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?
VL: I would definitely have dinner with one of Phi Sig’s founders. I would love to hear what they had envisioned as the direction for our organization to grow in and if they had ever imagined us being at the point we are at today. I think it would be amazing to hear about the roots and foundation of our organization to understand truly what we were meant to be here for.
Thanks for letting us learn about you, Val! Keep up with her on social media!
Twitter: valluutran
Instagram: valluutran