Elizabeth Boggio

Pronouns: She/Her

Major: Chemistry, Mathematics 

Year: Second

Hometown: Rohnert Park, CA

Chemistry Club (Officer), Queer Student Alliance (Member)

My favorite memory during my time at SSU (thus far) has been volunteering with the Chemistry Club during National Chemistry Week to bring the joy of science to local elementary schools. Engaging kids in STEM projects and lectures is something that has made me feel as though I'm making a positive difference in my community and the larger world. Additionally, working with the Chemistry Club has allowed me to become friends with some of the most dedicated and hard-working individuals that I have ever had the privilege of meeting, and I look forward to continuing to work with them to improve this annual highlight of my semester.

The most challenging part of my college experience has been the struggle to find myself in an entirely new environment. Feeling out of place entering a new world is a fairly universal experience, but I worried about my ability to even begin to fit in a place as complicated as a university. I don't think I would have survived if I hadn't forced myself to try new things, really taking a stab at everything that this place had to offer, and at the same time finding new friends and new communities to call my own.

The reason I chose to pursue higher education is because of a desire to simultaneously know everything there is to know about the fields that interest me (note the double major; I have a lot of questions), and to use what I learn to benefit the world around me. For a very long time, I've recognized that one of the most important ways to create meaningful change in this world is to educate oneself about all that afflicts it and its inhabitants.

I don't think that this alone would have been enough for me to thrive in the ways that I do now, however. It's only through the people around me that I am able to stay motivated and stay on the path that brought me here in the first place. From my professors and advisors to my friends (and maybe rivals), everyone at SSU has encouraged me to continue my journey, no matter how difficult it may be.

There are so many people I feel obliged to credit with the success I've found in college thus far. My professors, for a start, whether engaging me in interesting lectures on my major or just helping me to survive my GE classes. My advisors, for making sure that I actually manage to get a degree in a sensible timeframe. The entire Chemistry Club, for welcoming me as a freshman with no friends and nowhere to go. My best friends and academic rivals, for always pushing me toward bettering myself, even if only out of spite.