Student Spotlight: Delia Latini ‘23
September 20, 2022
“I have always known I wanted to go to Kean University.” – Delia Latini
Delia Latini, who is currently a senior at Kean, was first introduced to Kean University during her sophomore year of high school through the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Conference, a program designed to help high school sophomores recognize their leadership talents and apply them to become effective, ethical leaders in their home, school and community. She instantly fell in love with the campus, especially its size and diverse student body.
Delia’s experience at Kean, thus far, has been “life-changing” and she has made sure to make her own involvement a focal point of her college experience. As a freshman, Delia began volunteering with the Leadership Institute, a four-year leadership development program at Kean. The program teaches students valuable skills such as public speaking, group work and emotional intelligence, all of which help to make Kean students more marketable in their future careers. Delia then went on to work at the Institute with the Center for Leadership and Service, helping students and teaching them the skills she found beneficial.
Interested in politics, Delia later joined the Student Government Association as a senator. She is now the Senior Class Treasurer and is eager to work with her board and promote the ideas and wishes of the senior class. The connections she built in the Student Government Association led her to the President’s Advisory Council. Delia began to grow professionally while working with the team to solve problems on campus, like safety at night and updating the trolly system. Lastly, the President’s Advisory Council afforded her the opportunity to work at the John S. Watson Institute for Urban Policy and Research where she spent the summer learning about public policy and connecting the Institute to Kean through various projects.
One personal aspect of which Delia is most proud with regard to her time at Kean is advocating for various groups of people. At the Leadership Institute, she taught students how to advocate for themselves and their future. In the Student Government Association, she works to advocate for the students. The President’s Advisory Council gave her the space to advocate on a higher-level, working with a more diverse group of students and their wishes, while the Watson Institute introduced her to public policy, advocating on a state-wide level and working to benefit a much larger group of people.
Delia states that advocacy has been the most rewarding part of her college career and has helped her grow. She plans to continue using any platform she creates for herself to advocate for others and make changes where possible.