2 Weeks Away!!

Posted on May 3, 2013 by PayalB

Hey readers, it’s officially 2 more weeks until I can go home!!

When I should have been writing my 10 page Spanish paper, 8 page fashion paper and working on a journalism project. I went out to Relay for Life instead!

I made a good decision because it was super fun. The whole quad was alive with everyone engaging in different activities including a bouncy slide

New Paltz raised more than $35,000 for the American Cancer Society!!

It is great giving back to charities and even the New Paltz community which I also did this weekend.

photo 1 (2)

Saturday was the New Paltz clean sweep. I went with Emerging Leaders and cleaned up all of Main Street!

This past week was a lot of fun but it’s definitely time to buckle down and do some work! See you guys next week with a big auto reflection and fun pictures from the Emerging Leaders graduation.

Opportunity and Appreciation :)

Posted on April 26, 2013 by PayalB

Hey readers, can you believe there is only about 3 weeks left of school??!

Yesterday, I was helping out the Dept of Admissions by talking on a panel when one of the parents of a prospective students asked

“What’s the biggest advice you would give to someone when starting college?”

College is all about opportunity. There is no harm in trying new things, if you don’t like something you just don’t do it again. College is a time to
step outside your comfort zone and experience new things:)

Every week I try to experience something new, on Wednesday, I went to an event called TRANSaction on campus. None of my friends could go so I went alone but wow was it a great event. Speakers came to talk about the transgender community and many people from all around campus went to listen. It is great that we have such a big supportive community.

Stepping out of your comfort zone can be a big deal. Never would I have imagined that I would be the President of my Hall Gov, we do such great things and it is awesome to be a leader. Yesterday was also RA Appreciation Day. Each hall gov member made a R.A a sign and a foam mailbox filled with letters from their residents. We also surprised them with a video montage at the end of their staff meeting!

I love my Crispell Cougar Family!

This Sunday is New Paltz’s big event Relay for Life, plenty of pictures next week from it. Have a great weekend everyone and go out in the April sun before finals weeks hits!!

Utilizing Resources (with Hugo the Hawk of course!)

Posted on April 19, 2013 by PayalB

Hey Readers!! I have been doing a lot of papers and projects this week so I haven’t been experiencing campus as much as I usually do but I did make time to participate in Hugo HUNT

Our lovely Mascot Hugo

This event was put on by RHSA (Residence Hall Student Association) and NRHH (National Residence Hall Honorary) About ten teams competed on a 3 hours campus-wide scavenger hunt! The grand prize was $100 for your team and $100 matched to your charity of choice.

Doing this hunt reminded me of all the resources we have on campus including

1) Student Activities and Union Services- Located in the 2nd floor of the SUB, this is the location for all your club needs! You can book a meeting room through this office, stamp club flyers for approval and plan big club events with the help of the staff. You can also buy bus tickets here to go home.

Student Activities and Union Services

2) Mail Services- Located in the basement of the Haggarty Administration Building, this is where students go to pick up packages The mail room emails you with a package number and it is very convenient. Letters are delivered right to residence hall mailboxes.

3)Career Resource Center- Located in Humanities, this is the perfect place to go to fix up your resume, find a job and practice interview skills!

Career Resource Center

Hope this handy dandy guide helped out:) Tonight I am performing in a huge show sponsored by the club JAM ASIA, tons of pictures to come next week!

Frolicking, Friends and Fish?

Posted on April 12, 2013 by PayalB

Hello readers! I have fabulous news!

I am officially a R.A in Bevier Hall!!!! I found out yesterday and was sooo surprised. I am so grateful and I can’t wait to start training and working with the awesome staff there. After 2 interviews, a social and a group process day, the process was extensive but couldn’t be more worth it!

In other news, this past weekend I went to an RHSA (Residence Hall Student Association ) retreat! It was a lot of fun, representatives from each residence hall’s hall government

nt on campus got the opportunity to go and play lots of fun leadership activities and get to know each other better. It took place at the YMCA at Greenkill, and as you can see in the picture below, it was beautiful!!!

Hall gov has been so much fun lately! I highly recommend getting involve with your hall’s government in the beginning of the year, you get to work with all of the R.A’s and have fun programs. Hall Gov Appreciation Day was this Monday and my R.A made me the best sign! We also had a fun program where we gave out free fish to residents!

Hall Gov Fun!!

The weather today is kind of rainy but for the past week it has been nothing but frolicking in the sunshine. I always like to joke that everybody crawls outside their dorm whenever it is nice. The campus is so alive with people playing frisbee, sitting outside and even tanning. A few friends and I sat in the sun all day on Tuesday

Hope everyone is having a ton of fun before finals kick in! Let me know how are you are celebrating spring in the comments section below!

A Week Full of Campus Events!

Posted on April 5, 2013 by PayalB

Hey readers! Hope you had a great spring break!!! I mostly relaxed and saw a bunch of friends. Going back to school is always bittersweet because I have so much work coming up but I got to go to a bunch of campus events this week which made it all better

RHSA Elections

I went to my first Residence Hall Student Association elections, and though I wasn’t running for anything it was great to see the whole election process. One of my great friends Steven is now on the eboard for next year. RHSA is a great organization that unites the residence halls. I got involved through hall government and it has been fun ever since!

Hasbrouck Carnival Night

So you may hear me talk about Hasbrouck Dining Hall almost all the time because there is always a wide variety of food there. Sometimes they do fun theme nights, and this week it was carnival/street food YUM.

Carnival Night!

There was all sorts of vendors like churros, funnel cakes and pretzels set up. It was also my first time trying a fried Oreo. I didn’t really know of the event before so it was super fun seeing all the balloons and even a DJ set up at the dining hall.

Multicultural Night!

As you may know, I am on the Indian Dance team Nachle New Paltz. I got involved because some of my other friends are on the team. We practice twice a week and get to show off our skills at various events. This week it was Asian Student Association’s and International Student Union’s Multicultural Night. There was tons of free food and lots of performances teaching about different cultures. Check out all the photos of me dancing

Multicultural Night!

Last but not least, Our mascot Hugo won the SUNY system’s Mascot Madness competition!! Though we are a relatively small school, we still have a lot of pride and heart!!! <3 Tell me what you are up to and why you love this school in the comments section below!

Time for Spring Break!

Posted on March 22, 2013 by PayalB

Hey readers! I am so excited to be going home today for Spring Break. But of course, before I leave I want to tell you about all the great things that happened on campus this week

This Wednesday, famous comedian Gilbert Godfried came to campus. He is pretty weel known for the voice of Iago in Aladdin and the voice of the Aflac duck. He along with other student comedian acts performed in the Student Union Multi-Purpose Room. It was hilarous and a great way to let off some stress!

Some pictures from the event….

I love this school for all the events it has to offer students. I almost never sit in my room bored. Last Friday, I went to a Buzz Karaoke. Buzz Karaoke’s are held about 2 times a month by the Residence Hall Student Association (RHSA), you get points for hall of the semester and a free t-shirt if you sing a song! Every time there are different themes, this time it was Hercules hence the togas.

My friends and I at RHSA Buzz Karaoke!

Speaking of hall of the semester, Crispell Hall is currently in first place! There couldn’t be a better way to kick off Spring Break. I hope everyone has a great vacation and plenty of relaxation!

SHINE BRIGHT LIKE A S.T.A.R

Posted on March 15, 2013 by PayalB

So despite having a cold pretty much all week, I have some good news! I am officially going to Ecuador this summer for study abroad!!!!! I could not be more grateful.

More good things happened this past weekend. Crispell Hall Government along with the 12 other residence halls went to the S.T.A.R.S conference sponsored by RHSA. It was an all day affair starting with the roll call….

The theme was Cirque Du Stars, so we put on a circus themed skit!

A little dark but Hall Gov performing a skit!

After the roll call was a series of leadership workshops, we even presented one all about race and gender stereotypes and received first place! The banquet at the end of the day had tons of delicious food. This was my first time going to the conference and it felt awesome walking away from it a winner but also with new leadership skills. Here are some pictures from the conference

What activities are you involved in lately? Let me know in the comments section below and remember only a week until spring break!!!

Cold Weather=Pigging Out!

Posted on March 8, 2013 by PayalB

Hey readers! Geez its freezing out, you would think by March we would be done with snow. NOPE.

Last week, I talked about applying for different jobs on campus. I had my interview for Resident Assistant this Tuesday and though I was really nervous, I hope I did a good job!

Since this week I haven’t been doing anything besides writing papers and being huddles under blankets, I figured I would talk about my food! Yup, we all have to eat on this campus and when its all snowy outside nobody wants to leave their dorm besides if its Carnival Night at Hasbrouck Dining Hall…

Lets start out with a few places to eat on campus that you can spend your Dining Dollars.

Backstage Cafe - literally the best place to go to grab a quick snack or to get lunch avoiding long lines in the Student Union Building. I go here at least three times a week in between classes to get a bagel and some orange juice. There is usually no rush plus you get to talk to the nicest people working the cash register.

Student Union Building, the SUB- the most popular food place on campus besides the Dining Hall. People come to the SUB to get a variety of food and to meet their friends. It is a great place to go, the best is at awkward times so there are no lines. There is a bunch of food places to choice from Mojavista (Mexican food) to Seattles Best Coffee (Our version of Starbucks)

Hasbrouck Dining Hall- where many students go to relax and eat. There is a whole buffet of options and food items like Omelets and Pancakes which are made-to-order. Hasbrouck has awesome breakfast in my opinion and they even have fun themes some days like this weeks Carnival Night!

Cotton Candy from Carnival Night!

Have fun pigging out! I am getting hungry just writing the post! This weekend I have the STARS Conference which is a leadership conference put on by RHSA and NRHH. I will have plenty of photos next week of Crispell Hall Gov participating in different leadership workshops.

Time for Applications!

Posted on March 1, 2013 by PayalB

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

This week was a little insane with the amount of work I had to do from essays to presentations to projects. But now it is over! It was totally worth it to be stressed to gain satisfaction, it was so good to start crossing things off of my To-Do List.

More stress is coming with plenty of applications. I am applying to be in National Residence Hall Honorary, a Resident Assistant and a Student Ambassador along with my study abroad application!

Along this process of applications, I have learned a few tips to share with all of you.

Tips for Applications and Interviews!

1) Be aware of deadlines! There are at least three different due dates on my calender right now that are bolded and highlighted. These are dates you never want to miss.

2)Edit Edit Edit your essays!- My biggest thing is that I write how I talk. Crispell’s PCA (peer career resource assistant) Lauren is awesome and helped me with all my applications. They are the person that you should defiantly utilize.

3) Relax and be yourself!- I know this is the one that seems most obvious, but it is also one that people forget to do.

My interview for RA is next Tuesday, I will let you know how that goes. In the meantime, enjoy this beautiful weather and stay stress-free!!

A little bit of Culture on Campus :)

Posted on February 22, 2013 by PayalB

Hey readers!

In last week’s blog, I talked about my big South Asian Cultural Association dinner! It went really well despite a bunch of technical difficulties.

We were all dancing on stage when suddenly the music went out, no applause for the DJ at all. But overall we got the music started again and everybody had a great time:) After practicing for weeks and weeks, I am so glad everything went great. Here are a few pictures from the event:

Me and my friends all dressed up ready to dance!

Food, Dancing and lots of fun!

I wanted to talk about some time management skills because being involved in a lot of clubs takes up so much time. During my days, I usually find myself going to more club meetings and doing work for my organizations rather than school work which is totally not okay.

Tips for staying involved while staying in your books

1. If you can help it, don’t go to club meetings the weeks that you have midterms or any other huge exams coming up. The club leader will totally understand.

2. If you have to do work for all your clubs, try to set out a time period each day that you focus on just that. For example on Tuesday, I worked an hour just to get more points for our Hall Government in order to win hall of the semester

3. Always get your homework done before embarking on fun adventures. Trust me, you don’t want to go to bingo and then stay up till 1 writing a Spanish paper, not fun.

I think this totally defines college life haha, it’s all a balance between social life and good grades.

Hope you guys are having a good semester so far! Keep it up, midterms are approaching soon. Next week I will talk more about stress relief because I sure have one stressful week coming up!