&elevate influence

Sarah Elizabeth Rosenberg, ZΣ

I can still remember my first day of college, a nervous freshman walking around to find my class. I did not know anyone on campus. Sure, I had heard of some people, but I did not know anyone personally. Growing up, my uncle always told me that once I went to college, I should join a sorority because he knew I would find lifelong friends within my chapter. While being that nervous freshman, I went through recruitment and I found my lifelong sisters at the Zeta Sigma Chapter of Alpha Sigma Alpha.

I will be the first to admit my time in AΣA was not perfect, but I gained so many skills that I struggled with my whole life.

1. I struggled to build relationships. While having mentors through your chapter (and Big/Little) is a start, you must cultivate friendships to continue to grow. I started to talk to other members at different events to find my future besties.

2. I had held leadership positions in high school but nothing like the responsibilities of a sorority leader. I started my tenure as the Vice President of PR & Recruitment while also holding various chairman positions along the way. I used my advisors as a resource to guide me through this new world. P.S, special shoutout to Alyssa Alleyn Panozzo. She made the transition from a new member to the executive board seamless and easy for me.

Since graduating, I have used the drive and skills I found in Alpha Sigma Alpha to guide me into a major career change from teaching to corporate instructional design. I currently work for the Texas Rural Water Association, where I build online learning courses for regulatory certification within the water/wastewater field. These courses are vital to those who work in rural Texas water because it allows them to follow the regulations so everyone in Texas (regardless of income or area) has safe drinking water. Promoting equality for all, in all aspects of life, is one of the important core values I live out.

My goal while building these materials for learners is to create a fun, inviting and informative adventure. Some ways I complete this are by using graphic design skills and creating fun activities. These skills were fostered during my time as a chapter officer in AΣA. Creating professional and beautiful materials for recruitment was one way to engage potential new members in our process. While the activities I create now are vastly different than those during my time as a chapter officer, creating those activities allowed me to think outside of the box, which has been the skill I covet the most.

Outside of work, I volunteer with the Junior League of Austin. For those unfamiliar with Junior League, it is “an organization of women whose mission is to advance women's leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration and training.” There are chapters all over the world. After graduating college, I found I struggled with continuing to serve my community. While in AΣA, there are required volunteer times, but once you graduate, sometimes you may tell yourself you have time, but then life happens, and it becomes a struggle to schedule time. With Junior League, I have that structure to allow myself to set aside time to volunteer and give back to my communities. Specifically, I love serving children, and my chapter has a specific focus on children.

In my chapter, we have several signature programs that I have been able to participate in that directly benefit the children of the Austin, TX community. During my first year (similar to the new member semester), I spent more than 30 hours volunteering with our Food in Tummies program, where we made weekend food bags for students who struggled to find food over the weekends.

I am beginning my first active year in the League, where I have been chosen to volunteer within the league (as opposed to an outside partner) as the A Christmas Affair public relations co-chair. There is a significant overlap between what I do now versus my role as a chapter officer within AΣA. Without my experience within AΣA, I would have never felt comfortable moving into such a position during my first active year.

Within this sorority I have found my best friends for life. I have seen them all go through major life changes since we graduated, and being able to support them and stand up for them at the biggest moments of their life is a gift I will treasure for the rest of my life. Recently, my best friend, Sierra Stewart, got engaged, and I was able to be part of the planning process and the actual proposal (I hid in a bush to take photos). One sister, Mila Kelly-Kilgore, has moved for school/jobs, and we are still as close as ever. I saw Taylor Swift with another sister, Nancy Benet. Even one sister, Miranda Rodriguez, whom I knew in high school and lost touch with, was allowed to reconnect because of AΣA. I hold all the friendships I made close to my heart, which I will be forever grateful for.

While my experience was not what I expected going into college, being a sorority woman, and an Alpha Sigma Alpha, has changed me and made me grow as a woman of integrity and strength who will continue to strive to share our message of elevating the influence of women in our world.