My first year at Adelphi University was perhaps my most eventful year to date. As a small town girl from Texas, the idea of moving near a world-renowned, gigantic city like New York completely terrified me.
MacKenzie Banks ’21
My first year at Adelphi University was perhaps my most eventful year to date. As a small town girl from Texas, the idea of moving near a world-renowned, gigantic city like New York completely terrified me. I didn’t know what to expect for myself educationally or personally when I packed up my entire life and made the 30-hour drive to Garden City.
On campus, I threw myself into any organization I could. In my first year on campus, I grew a love for working with my residence halls. I joined the Resident Student Association and became an active member in my own hall council. Being a member of such an active organization has allowed me to play a small part in student leadership at the university.
I vowed to grasp every special opportunity Adelphi’s location afforded me. As a lover of late night comedy and politics, I took it upon myself to attend as many tapings as I could of my favorite shows. Since my time here, I have attended 21 episodes of Saturday Night Live, 4 tapings of Seth Meyers, one Jimmy Fallon show, and one Stephen Colbert episode. It’s safe to say that my love for comedy has not only grown, but it has been deeply embedded into who I am as an individual. My interest after college lies within the world of late-night political satire. It is my wildest dream to write for a comedy show that has its roots in the political sphere. Apart from gallivanting around 30 Rockefeller Plaza, I found myself at many Broadway shows, wandering around Central Park, and taking joyrides on the Staten Island ferry. I did everything in my power to take advantage of the glorious city at my disposal. New York City inspires me every time I step off the train onto 7th Avenue. The sights, the smells, and the glorious people make this melting pot a place I love to call my new home.
Alongside my enveloping passion for comedy is my devotion to activism. This past year, I found out exactly who I am in my activism when I came to a safe, open environment. Throughout the school year and into the summer, I attended several actions with organizations including, Decolonize This Place, Black Lives Matter, Center for Popular Democracy, March for Our Lives, and Women’s March. Fighting for human rights has always been at the core of my existence, but I never knew how much social justice would impact my life until I was fully engulfed within the community. Back in Texas, I never felt compelled to be active in local Politics. These protests, rallies, marches, and civil disobedience actions I attended in New York shaped the course of my first-year experience at Adelphi. I established my political beliefs, my close friendships, and my love for political science as a whole.
For further information, please contact:
Department of Political Science
Blodgett Hall Room 202
p – 516.877.4590