By Marrissa Ballard | Managing Editor
Picture a small agenda, much like the one that most college students use to organize their schedules. Now imagine the blocks and lines in that little notebook filling up with homework assignments, papers, and readings. Then add on top of that countless meetings ranging from clubs and check-ins with faculty to work study and RA shifts. When all of the lines are filled and all of the time in a day is taken up, you might find yourself imagining what junior Patricia Socarras’ schedule looks like.
Patricia, known as Patty, is just about as involved as a student can be here at Salve. On the academic side, Patty is a Philosophy and Sociology and Anthropology double major, which often constitutes a large workload.
One of her favorite classes was Dr. Curtis’ “Gender and Sexuality” course, and says that she was very passionate about the class. “We talked about the different ways you conceive of gender, what is romantic, and the idea of sex and how social it is,” says Patty. “It’s too big of a subject to take on in a semester, but Deb Curtis did a great job of laying it all out.”
When asked about her employment and involvement on campus, Patty offers a chuckle before she starts listing her many activities. For starters, Patty is the undergraduate intern in the Office of Multicultural Programs, a Writing Consultant at Salve’s Writing Center and a Resident Advisor.
“Being an RA was interesting,” explains Patty. She was assigned to Hunt, which she knew would be a dorm with high activity. “The best experience has been getting to know my residents, for sure.”
In terms of activities, Patty’s most demanding role is serving as the President of the Student Government Association. “SGA pushed me to be a very different leader than I thought I would be,” says Patty. “It gave me a lot of actual leadership skills that I wouldn’t have acquired anywhere else or in any other position.”
While serving as President, Patty constantly found herself in the position of compromising between different opinions and plans. “I was put in a position where I had to run and learn at the same time while I was running,” says Patty. “SGA was definitely the most challenging thing to do in the last year, but it was very rewarding in the end.”
In addition to serving on SGA, Patty is also member of the Student Conduct Hearing Board. She is also involved with the Female Empowerment Club, and the Multicultural Student Organization.
While here at Salve, Patty says she’s definitely learned a lot. “A lot of it has been about myself and what I think the world is like and what I think the world should be like,” she says.
Looking forward to her remaining time at Salve, Patty has a few ideas about what she would like to do next. “As SGA President, I feel like I capitalized on the sparked conversation about race on campus, in all facets whether it be curriculum, student population, or the idea of race,” she explains. “So that’s something I want to continue to capitalize on, and I want to continue offering those discussions for people who might not have them otherwise.”
Patty not only wants to inspire conversation about race, but also wants to bring light to other topics, including sexuality, gender, and environmentalism. More recently, Patty has immersed herself in learning about her family history. “I’ve become even more passionate about race issues because I have learned more about where I come from and what the people in my family had to deal with,” Patty explains.
“I’m just trying to read everything I can and I’m trying to find different voices from what is offered at Salve,” Patty says. “That’s something I would definitely say follows me around everywhere and filters me when I talk to people or think about how I want to interact in certain situations.”
So can the Salve community expect to see Patty on more student panels? Patty believes she’ll be involved in the conversation in some way. “As long as I’m representing myself, I’ll be on panels or organizing them,” she says. She laughs a little before adding, “I’ll be a usual suspect, regardless.”
Next year, Patty will be a senior, a fact she greets with excitement rather than nervousness. “I want new things, and I want to continue the exploration in new ways,” says Patty. “Salve has been great to me, but I want more.”
Patty explains that she’s been thinking about the future for a while now. “I’m definitely thinking about all the different things that drive me and where do I want to be in the world with them,” she explains. “With me learning about my history, I’m now interested to take all of it and be like ‘Where does this go? How can I make this meaningful for myself and to someone else?’”
For a long time, Patty wanted to be a lawyer and had planned on attending law school after graduating. Now, she’s not so sure. “I want to leave it open, and I want less structure.” she says. “I don’t want a cookie-cutter path.”
