By: DANIELA PEREZ-LEAL / STAFF REPORTER
Shivani Vaidya, a senior in the Bachelor’s program in Business Administration in Finance was elected by the students as the new president of the Student Government Association (SGA) for the 2022-2023 term.
Vaidya, 20, is a committed president, full of enthusiasm, positive energy and awesome ideas. She is always open to hearing from all students from the LIU community, knowing their cultures, background, necessities and ideas, and also helping them.
In addition to serving as president, Vaidya also works as a resident assistant in LIU's student residence, Connolly Hall. Despite Vaidya’s busy schedule, Seawanhaka was able to sit down with the new SGA president last week.
Vaidya was born in Phoenix, but her family is from India. She moved from “the Valley of the Sun'' to “The Big Apple,” in hope of one day work on Wall Street.
“Since I was a little girl, my goal and dream has always been to work on Wall Street. I came to LIU because of the resources that the Business School has are really good,” she said.
“I also like being in New York because the environment is so different from Arizona. Arizona is slow and New York is fast and you have the opportunity to do networking and get to know a lot of people with different backgrounds and cultures,” she added.
Similar to her dreams and attraction to NYC, what Vaidya loves most about LIU is the diversity. “I feel that since I came to LIU, I have met people from all over the world with many different backgrounds, cultures and stories. There are always some things new to learn, and everybody is a good person.”
Alongside Vaidya’s aspirations, she has always been a part of different campus clubs and organizations, searching for ways to, as she herself described it, make a difference and have a positive impact.
“The best place to do that was by being a part of SGA, because this was going to allow me to look at how I can make LIU a better place for everyone and how I can impact students, “ the new SGA president explained.
Before Vaidya became president, she was vice president and sophomore class governor. This allowed her to experience student life under SGA, see the way they were run and feel their voice for students at LIU; all becoming motivation for new ideas and visions for SGA.
“I want SGA to be an organization that everyone in LIU Brooklyn knows, and let students know that they can come to us if they want to see a difference on campus, because we are here to listen and help them.”
That goes for herself, too, she noted.
“I want to be someone that all students know they can come to me and feel comfortable talking to me about any kind of problem or anything they see on campus that they want to change.”
Prioritizing is a main goal for Vaidya as she begins her first term as president.
“There are so many different things we want to do on campus. I think the biggest challenge I have is prioritizing what we need to do first, because a lot of projects or things probably are going to take longer than a year.”
Vaidya doesn’t just have a vision for SGA, she also has aspirations for her own future.
“After I graduate, my goal is to work in investment banking in a consulting postion,” she said.
Aside from her professional role at LIU, Vaidya is a huge Los Angeles Lakers fan.
“I always have Mamba metality,” she said, referencing the late Lakers great Kobe Bryant.
Christmas and the Indian festival Diwali are her favorite holidays. Diwali is known as the festival of lights and is celebrated during the Hindu lunisolar month Kārtika (in the Gregorian calendar, Kārtika typically overlaps the months of October and November).
“It is a great time of the year when the entire community comes together to celebrate. Also, Diwali makes me feel most connected with my family and culture,” Vaidya explained.