by The Cowl Editor on October 31, 2019
Features
by Nicole Silverio ’22
News Staff
Nicole Ing ‘21 has been an active part of the Providence College community since her freshman year and has continued her work ever since. Ing is currently vice president of the Asian American Association (AAA) and an orientation leader. She is also involved in Dance Club, the Board of Multicultural Student Affairs (BMSA), and Leadership Fellows.
Ing grew up in Saugus, MA with parents who immigrated to the United States from Cambodia. Growing up with parents from Asia, Ing mentioned how she is proud of her Asian heritage and culture.
When it came time to apply for colleges, she said Providence College was the last on her list, but having had an uncle who went here, her dad encouraged her to apply. She did not like the school at first. In her first semester of freshman year, she spent the majority of her free time in her room and did not reach out to others. When second semester rolled around, she realized she needed to reach out to people in order to make friends.
“In the first semester there weren’t a lot of people I shared common interests with,” she said, “so when I found people that I had things in common with, I felt better.”
After joining the Asian American Association, she felt more comfortable being around those she could relate to culturally. In her second semester of freshman year, she began to regularly involve herself in the club. The executive members pushed her to become an exec member herself. She started out in public relations, trying her best to make a difference.
As VP of the club, she is involved in assisting the president, designing all posters for the club and planning meetings. Meetings are bi-weekly, planning events around Asian culture to promote and introduce Asian culture beyond Chinese food and sushi.
Ing said, “The Asian American Association is a way to bring people together, bringing pride into being Asian American or even just Asian.” Her favorite part of the Asian American Association is “bringing people together, especially at events, and seeing people happy and talking to each other, and knowing that I was a part of making that happen.”
Aside from being VP, she also involved herself in the Center for Orientation, Transitions, and Leadership. She loved her orientation leaders going into her freshman year. She made the decision to apply to show people of her background that there are other Asians on campus and that they should not be afraid of reaching out because there are other students like them.
She became an orientation leader in her sophomore year, and this year was her first year being a June orientation leader and an autumn leader. “I liked PC a lot more once I began to get involved, and I wanted to help others get more involved,” said Ing.
Ing’s story shows how in the beginning, students may feel uncomfortable in a place that seems out of their comfort zone, but getting involved and striving to make a difference in the community helps to feel more comfortable, helping them to fit in despite differences in their background. She shows how organizations and clubs revolving around different cultures and backgrounds are important, helping some to feel comfortable in their own skin while helping others learn about different cultures, as it can be difficult to learn about them otherwise.
Her goal is to spread diversity around the campus, which helps us to be more open and to continue to spread diversity in our community.
Ing is a marketing major with a minor in public & community service. She is undecided on what she wants to do in her future career; however, she is considering designing or event planning since she loves both of those things. She does not want to sit in an office for several hours a day.
Although Ing does not know where she will end up, her work at PC over the next couple years will prepare her for her bright future.