'Community of change makers': Campus Y's First-Year Council connects student advocates

For first-years at UNC, the Campus Y First-Year Council provides a way to get involved with student advocacy on campus. 

This year, the organization is led by Netra Parikh and Lucia Paulsen.

Parikh said the FYC is primarily focused on introducing first-years to some of Campus Y’s many committees. She said the group organizes education sessions on current events, social justice projects and first-year community building programs.

FYC is an open committee, meaning that any first-year is eligible to get involved, Paulsen said. There is no official application process, however general members are expected to attend 75 percent of meetings and participate in council discussions and workshops. 

Paulsen said that currently, the council consists of 15 active members, meeting every Tuesday in the Campus Y.

This semester, Parikh said that members took part in education sessions, workshops, professor panels and presentations involving Campus Y committees including Best Buddies and Project Literacy. She said the council plans on organizing a social justice project in the spring semester.

This year, the FYC is also launching its new Fellowship Program for current members, with applications open now.

She said fellows would gain hands-on experience in various areas, including event logistics, coordination and fundraising. Parikh also said fellows will engage in intensive committee projects and develop skills, preparing them for future leadership opportunities. Paulsen said about five to six core fellows are expected to be chosen.

“We are giving first-years skills, both through the fellowship and through our meetings, that allow them to succeed more in other areas of their club membership or campus involvement,” they said.

Council member Aakash Palathra said he finds it important to take advantage of such opportunities offered throughout campus, especially in his first year at UNC.

Palathra, who said he was very involved in student advocacy and civic engagement throughout high school, said he feels the Campus Y upholds values that resonate with him.

“We live in a world of abundant censorship and both direct and indirect forms of oppression,” he said. “It's very important that the student body rise up together as a united front against those sorts of oppression.”

FYC member Diana Cantu-Melo said that she always admired the work that Campus Y does. Growing up with parents who emphasized the importance of social justice, Cantu-Melo said she appreciates the values and the sense of community that the FYC provides.

“I feel that it is very important for students to be educated on social justice,” she said. “It allows students to voice their opinions. It provides a supportive environment, and it’s overall a grand community of change makers that want to educate themselves and educate others.”

Parikh emphasized the importance of community building, especially for first-years at large universities like UNC, where she said so many people share different opinions, morals and viewpoints.

She said that having a space for first-years with similar values to learn together is really important and that along with doing educational projects, the FYC also tries to have fun working together.

“Even as somebody who's leading, it's helped me find a sense of community in a place that I was really, really scared about finding community,” Parikh said.

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