Vinson and Talley   The Whetstone/Kelly Morgan

By: Kelly Morgan (Whetstone Staff Writer)

Junior Keeyana Talley and senior Antonique Vinson lead several organizations at Wesley.

“I wanted to get more involved because I wanted to make a difference in my school,” Vinson said. “People complain so much and don’t do anything, so I wanted to do something.”

Talley’s inspiration to get involved was during her attendance of Wesley’s student leadership conference.

“I saw many individuals receiving awards for their hard work and excellent leadership skills,” Talley said. “I was amazed and I set a goal for myself to one day be an excellent leader. There was no other way for me to do so but to get involved. I challenged myself to get out of my safety zone and grow into a leader.”

Vinson, a Kinesiology major, is involved in eight organizations at Wesley.

Vinson’s favorite organization is the Step Team.

“I love to step,” she said. “If you ever see me, there’s something wrong if I’m not stepping.”

Vinson has been stepping since she was 5-years-old and she stepped in high school. She has been a member throughout her entire college career.

“[Stepping] is something different and it’s a lot of hard work,” she said. “I like being president because I can be the decision maker, I recruit and I’m like the big sister. Anytime [the girls] need help with stuff, they call and text me. If they have life issues, they talk to me.”

Talley, a psychology major, has been an RA for two years.

Talley loves the bond she develops with her residents and students by being an RA.

“You touch so many peoples’ lives,” Talley said. “Charles Conley [who committed suicide last semester] lived on my floor. I still remember, to this day, him coming to my room and venting to me about him struggling with his classes.”

Vinson is an RA in Malmberg hall.

“I’ve met a lot of great people,” Vinson said. “I learned a lot about my myself and my tolerance. Working and helping the students is the best part.”

Talley and Vinson agree that one of the hardest aspects about being an RA is when people are inconsiderate to others.

“The worst part [about being an RA] is when people act like their kids,” Vinson said. “Someone put feces on my floor sophomore year. I cursed out everyone and I made my residents clean it up.”

Talley wants her residents to be respectful of others.

“Telling people to do something more than once is annoying,” she said.

Talley does not like asking someone to turn down his or her music three separate times in one day.

Vinson and Talley are both members of Student United Way and the Black Student Union [BSU].

Vinson, the current treasurer, helped BSU become more involved on campus.

“No one really knew about BSU before,” she said. “It wasn’t as dynamic on campus as it is now with the block part and formal. I like the fact that it is the students’ voices.”

Talley got involved in Student United Way because it’s a different and new organization that is only based on community service. “I loved the fact that it got people involved in health and into the community to learn and advocate.”

Vinson is a project manager for Students In Free Enterprise [SIFE]. SIFE is a way for students to exercise different business techniques.

Vinson is proud of her project about Environmental Sustain Ability.

“We proved that CFL light bulbs can last longer than regular ones,” she said. “These light bulbs lower energy costs and can be recycled better than regular light bulbs. We have presented to a SIFE board that includes executive members of Wal-Mart, Pepsi and Nike.

Liz Wallace, sophomore, in-coming president of Alpha Phi Omega and softball manager, has been inspired by Talley and Vinson’s involvement.

“I know I’ve done certain things because of them,” Wallace said. “I remember [Vinson] getting me involved in APO. I’m still helping the softball team because of [Talley].

Vinson is also the treasurer of APO, a senior PULSE coordinator [People United to Lead the Struggle for Equality], and a member of the Student Government Association’s food committee.

Talley is also a captain on Wesley’s Softball team, a math tutor in the library and a member of the Psychology Club.