People
A Transformational Experience:
Running The University Student Union at Cal State Fullerton
HARPREET SINGH BATH
Fall 2014 presents an opportunity for the California State University, Fullerton (“CSUF”) community to embark on another academic year filled with amazing opportunities both in and out of the classroom. In the coming year ahead, we will see many students begin their college journey, while others get ready to finish and prepare for graduation.
It seems like yesterday, back in fall of 2010, when I first came to CSUF.
I was a 17-year-old freshman who had never visited Orange County or CSUF but was attracted to the university because of its amazing business program and first-rate baseball team, and to Orange County for its abundance of oranges. My time here at CSUF has been nothing short of an exciting journey, which has allowed me to grow – not only as a person but also as a leader, both on and off campus.
I spent my first semester being the typical commuter student. I came to school, went to class, waited exactly 30 minutes after my class for my parents to pick me up, and I was home before I even knew it.
It was terrible. I barely engaged with anyone outside of class and did not really enjoy my time on campus. I was always in a rush to get home versus seeking involvement opportunities.
Finally, during the winter break before my second semester, I got a job on campus to work as a student assistant in the Pollak Library. While the main reason for getting a job on campus was to pay for my college expenses, I soon began to realize the way in which it drastically changed my campus experience.
Working in the library, I began interacting with other student leaders, student employees, faculty, staff and administrators. The more I interacted with people on campus, the more opportunities I had to get involved.
Before I knew it, I was working part time at the campus bookstore, volunteering at the CSUF Volunteer and Service Center as a project director, and making friendships with student government leaders in the student union, Associated Students Inc.
In the course of one semester, my experience at CSUF had completely changed. No longer was I leaving right after my class ended or awkwardly trying to find a quiet space in the library to avoid interacting with others; now I was working on campus and seeking to build relationships with fellow students and looking at ways that I could further broaden my college experience.
It was also during this time that I began realizing many of the concerns that the CSUF student body was passionate about and how I could become an advocate for my peers as a member of student government – something I had always wanted to do since my days in high school.
The next half of my college involvement was spent in student government, first as a college representative and later as the governmental officer working on higher education issues throughout California. These experiences in student government opened my eyes to a whole new way of impacting the student experience, through shared governance at CSUF.
I soon recognized, by running for student body President, I had an opportunity to affect the college experience of my peers in a way I did not have the chance to do before.
Just being able to run and be considered for President was a big deal for me, and when the student body responded and elected me ASI president for 2014-2015, it was an exclamation mark on my entire experience here at CSUF.
A young Sikh-American who simply aspired to become the first in his family to graduate from college, was now also the first Sikh-American student body president in the history of CSUF and the CSU system.
Today, as I prepare to begin my term as President, I often look back and reflect on my journey at CSUF. It’s a journey that began as a commuter student, a journey that many of my fellow peers feel very connected to and as their president, I look forward to enhancing their college experience and helping them to have the best experience possible.
The author is a senior majoring in Business Administration / Management, pursuing an emphasis in Operations Management.
[Courtesy: Orange County Register. Edited for sikhchic.com]
August 14 2014
Conversation about this article
1: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), August 14, 2014, 8:04 PM.
Everytime I see a Sikh saabat soorat and doing well my thoughts go to the hands that rocked the cradle. It is the fruit of the lessons learnt at home. Well done, Harpreet. Keep that smile.
2: Aman (Brampton, Ontario, Canada), August 15, 2014, 6:35 AM.
You are a great inspiration to those following behind you. It is so nice to see our youth finding their place in this world and being accepted by the communities in which they work, study, and play. Well done!