Not a minute of Kei Smith鈥檚 time at 91制片厂 is wasted.
In 2022, she founded the Asian Student Association with the goal of creating a space for community and cross-cultural sharing within many Asian identities.
In the 2022-23 academic year, she became the president of 91制片厂鈥檚 Pride Club, while also serving as an Illinois Ambassador for the Human Rights Campaign at the Kenneth Young Center.
And on top of all of that, she has fully embraced her role as the 2023-24 student trustee where she seeks to connect the 91制片厂 Board of Trustees to the student perspective.
Even walking up to meet us for this interview, she was wiping dirt off her hands after a long morning of planting native plants on campus with the environmental club. But when she鈥檚 not set on changing the world, you can find her rolling on the ground laughing with her sister.
My perfect day would start with waking up at my grandparents鈥� home in Osaka, Japan. I鈥檇 take a walk with my grandpa then head downtown to visit some of my favorite restaurants. Then at night I鈥檇 catch up with some friends and go to a festival. In the summer months, they have really fun festivals with a lot of dancing, food and community. I love it there. It鈥檚 my home away from home and where I go to rejuvenate and reconnect with my Japanese identity.
Annabeth Chase from the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. She鈥檚 smart, ambitious and loyal. She鈥檚 a bit snarky at times, but beneath her tough exterior, she鈥檚 a very kind person who looks out for the people she cares about. She鈥檚 also really into architecture and I could talk about that all day with her.
I remember some of my mentors and teachers in high school saying, 鈥淥nce you get through high school and you get to college, you鈥檒l fly.鈥� They encouraged me to trust the process and stick through school because so much good can come from it. And they were right. I鈥檝e discovered issues and people I care about and I鈥檝e been able to make the most of my experience so far, so those were strong words of encouragement.
Marine biology! Mostly because I love animals and I love the ocean, so it would be awesome to take care of marine life and understand it better because there鈥檚 so much about the ocean that we don鈥檛 know.
Too many to count! But I would say anytime I鈥檓 with my sister. We have the same sense of humor and a very similar lived experience, so sometimes all it takes is a glance and we鈥檙e both cracking up. She鈥檚 also really good at imitating voices and telling stories, so yeah 鈥� anytime I鈥檓 with my sister is when I laugh the hardest.
I鈥檓 trying not to use social media too much, but I really like on X (formerly Twitter). It鈥檚 just cute and funny pictures of cats. I also really like on Instagram. Basically, they take toy pianos and accordions and non-traditional instruments and they recreate famous melodies. It鈥檚 fun because you never know what instrument they鈥檙e going to use to recreate 鈥淛olene鈥� or something like that.
I grew up with a lot of Disney, so I would probably choose a Disney song like 鈥淩eflection鈥� from Mulan, 鈥淧art of Your World鈥� from The Little Mermaid or 鈥淕o the Distance鈥� from Hercules. These songs were such a big part of my childhood, so I could step up to the karaoke stage and remember the melodies and lyrics pretty easily.
I often wonder how long the human race will survive. When is our extinction point, and what will become of planet Earth? How will it survive, or will it survive?
I鈥檓 hopeful for a more sustainable future. Globally, of course, but also in the little ways we can help in our communities. Little things like planting more greenery at 91制片厂, or finding a way to bring more fresh food to campus. I just want to be able to make a difference wherever I am.
I really appreciate how much Harper works towards representing the 鈥渃ommunity鈥� in community college. I鈥檝e always felt like the people here are invested in my success 鈥� my advisors, my professors and even my peers. There鈥檚 just a really strong network of support and encouragement here and I wouldn鈥檛 have gotten that if I started at a four-year university.