Ishani Karki was still getting her bearings at Nebraska when she applied to join the Freshman Campus Leadership Association. She knew she wanted to grow as a leader — both personally and on campus — but felt she was still looking for “her people.”
In FLCA, Karki quickly realized that making new friends and fostering lifelong relationships are powerful avenues to becoming a leader.
“It’s always better to work with people you like and want to be around,” Karki said. “I haven't always thought of it this way, but FCLA has taught me that getting to know your peers and making that extra effort to bond with them is a very important part of leadership.”
FCLA helps first-year students like her who are interested in campus leadership positions — particularly within student government — connect with like-minded students, learn more about how student government operates and engage in acts of service around the Lincoln community.
“A lot of the work we do together is volunteer work in the community,” Karki said. “We also host our own philanthropy event in the spring that we plan all together. It's really nice to be surrounded by people who have big goals and want to do better because it encourages you to do the same.”
For Karki, FLCA has served as a consistent space for support during the whirlwind of her first semester of college. She encouraged all first-year students to seek any sort of involvement to find that same support system.
“College isn't so easy, especially when you're a freshman and you're just learning the ropes of everything,” Karki said. “It's really important to have a group of people that you can rely on and go to we're also going through the same things.”
This, she insisted, is where the importance of campus involvement comes in — anything that gets you connecting with fellow Huskers is worth doing.
"This is why, I think, it's so important to just get involved with something: you’re having your voice heard and finding people who are supportive and see your perspective, and that’s a very rewarding feeling.”
