Weeks before donning cap and gown, senior reflects on role as campus leader

You could say Elizabeth K. Green, who is slated to graduate in just a few weeks, has made the most of her time at Holy Cross.

In fact, all her extracurricular activities in the last four years are too long to list here. Instead, a summation is in order.

Green has held four leadership positions on campus; sat on three College committees; completed three internships, both on and off campus; presented at three regional and national conferences; and was involved in four other activities ranging from Admissions tour guide to student event coordinator. All this while maintaining a high GPA, and being inducted into Phi Alpha Theta, the National Honor Society in History, and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars.

It’s paid off.

Next year, Green will attend the University of Connecticut in pursuit of a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs. She has secured a graduate assistantship in the UConn Programs Office where she will be working closely with UConn’s programming board.

She says her experience working extensively in Holy Cross’ student activities, residence life, leadership, orientation programs and multicultural education offices — all under the Student Affairs umbrella — have served her well. She’s off to a great start in attaining her ultimate goal of serving as a dean or vice president of a Student Affairs office.

But for Green, a history major, getting into a good school or landing a coveted job doesn’t please her as much as the enrichment that comes from the experiences that helped get her there. Serving as a student representative on the “Hate: Not Here!” committee turned out to be one of the most inspiring experiences of her college career, she says.

“I’ve learned so much from working on the committee. I became part of challenging and serious conversations about tough issues that I’ve never experienced or had been part of before. I found myself entering discussions about hate on campus and entering a challenging dialogue about what it means to be different at Holy Cross.”

Considering her own ethnicity, Green isn’t someone you might typically expect to have a deep interest in multicultural education. She says growing up “white and blond” in the racially mixed city of Lowell helped her gain an appreciation for different cultures at an early age.

“This is something that Holy Cross needs,” she says about the “Hate: Not Here!” initiative. “There have been instances of hate and bigotry on campus, as recently as last month when a student was called a racial slur. The ‘Hate: Not Here!’ campaign serves to combat hate and bigotry. Through its programs and posters, which hang proudly on windows across campus, a bold statement is made that hate is not acceptable. Diversity issues are often seen as taboo or controversial to talk about. The campaign brings these issue right out in the open. It challenges us to put our uneasiness aside and engage in discussions, ask questions, and attend programs.

“The initiative is important because it gets people talking. Programs such as Judy Shepard’s presentation, screening of films like Brokeback Mountain and Crash, and the ‘Lessons from the Cross’ luncheon series bring people together and challenge students, faculty and administrators and staff to talk about hate and what it means to be different at Holy Cross. This is important because it will strengthen our personal and collective responsibility to maintaining a community marked by respect, dignity and civility. It is also important because diversity is part of life.”

Green encourages other students to explore different cultures. She shared that commitment when she spoke at the first of the luncheon series.

“Experiencing other cultures and talking about our differences is something that we all have to do — both in and outside of the classroom. Everyone brings different experiences, perspectives and interests to the table. Appreciating and valuing these differences are crucial because it makes us a stronger community. By interacting with people who are different than you, you learn and grow personally. You learn new ways of thinking and doing things. It makes life more interesting and the human experience richer.”

Motivating others to get involved and joining the discussion is hard work. Personally reaching out to other students and inviting them to attend events is the best way to boost involvement Green has found. As a resident assistant, for instance, she turned Judy Shepard’s recent talk into a “hall bonder” by encouraging her hall mates to attend the event.

“I think that most Holy Cross students want to be engaged in the dialogue of what it means to be different and to talk about issues of diversity, but I think many students are afraid to. Talking about diversity and hate can be uncomfortable. Students may be afraid of saying something political incorrect or offensive by mistake,” she says.

In her leadership positions, including president of the Campus Activities Board (CAB), she’s making every effort to continue the conversation even after she’s gone.

“As my time at Holy Cross is coming to an end, I’ve been ‘passing the torch’ to emerging leaders on CAB to encourage them to continue my efforts. The newly selected president of CAB, Gillian Bearfield ’08, has embraced the spirit of collaboration and multiculturalism. She has big plans for collaborations among various campus groups.”