"You Can B Passionate —Samantha Applebaum ('22, Accountancy)
Samantha Applebaum has really invested herself in being part of and engaging in the Bentley community over the past four years. She’s not only studying and making the best of her accountancy major and non-profit organizations and sociology minors, but she’s also president of Hillel, the vice president of public relations for the Greek Activities Council, the vice president of panhellenic affairs for Gamma Phi Beta, and a program manager in Service Learning.
Being the president of Hillel, the Jewish organization on campus, requires organizing weekly meetings and everything needed like ordering food, picking it up, booking the sacred space to celebrate holidays, and especially being the leader all members need—ensuring everyone feels accepted and welcomed. As the panhellenic affairs vice president, Samantha attends council meetings, represents her sorority, votes for the sorority’s best interests, and reports the information discussed to all other members. When participating in the Service Learning Program, she teaches kids how to use technology in a fun way that will benefit them in the future.
During the fully remote semesters, Samantha decided to get more involved and occupy her time participating in these clubs and organizations. When she came back to in-person activities and classes, it became harder to manage it all so she had to adapt. She has been able to master being a good leader and the work that comes with it. She has learned how to delegate tasks to others, collaborate with them, and encourage teamwork. Professionally, these endeavors have helped her expose herself to the world, even when she was afraid to do so. Also, it has improved her teamwork skills, since she has had to work towards achieving common goals with many different types of people.
Since Samantha is graduating from Bentley soon, she expects other members of her organizations to continue to grow them towards greatness. She hopes Hillel expands and makes students feel welcomed by the Jewish community. She says people hesitate to engage since they may think it is too religious, but it is a fun and socially interactive club, willing to receive more participants with open arms. She also hopes more freshmen come with the ambition to join the club’s activities board. Additionally, Samantha hopes for the Service Learning program to keep positively impacting elementary and high school students. Before COVID, one-on-one learning made kids’ experiences more successful and she wishes to go back to that.
When Samantha was younger, she participated in a summer camp and remembers the director telling her one of the best pieces of advice she has ever heard; “Do everything from now on and put everything you can to what you believe… because one day, someone other than yourself will notice.” Now that she is part of Hillel, she cannot imagine having not been a part of the club. She has strengthened her faith and even met her best friend there. She is passionate about every organization she is a part of and dedicates her time so that every club can achieve its goals. Samantha has shared wise advice not only to incoming freshmen but to anyone who needs to know it. “Don’t be afraid to get involved right away, you could get to know people with the same interests as you."