Vandegrift alumna, Kelli Steward, didn’t think that during her four years of college, she would get the opportunity to be president of her sorority at Trinity University. 

Steward has been president of Sigma Theta Tau since May of last year. Trinity University is not like most schools. They only have local sororities and fraternities that were created on the campus, Sigma Theta Tau being one of them. There are currently 52 girls in the sorority, and more will join after they participate in the Spring Rush.

“I knew I wanted to get involved with my club, I just didn’t know how involved,” Steward said. “I didn’t intend on running for president until one of my sisters said, ‘I think you would make a great president,’ which gave me the confidence to run.”

Steward was very involved when she was at Vandegrift and graduated in 2010. She was the co-editor of the Veteran Yearbook, Marketing Lead in Robotics, and the Public Relations Chair for DECA.

“Being involved at Vandegrift has turned me into the leader that I am today,” Steward said. “Since I was exposed to so many different types of people and leadership styles, I was able to adjust incredibly quickly in college.”

Trinity was always a dream school of Steward’s and was a top choice school for her.

“It was an amazing feeling when I got accepted,” Steward said. “As a senior, I can say confidently that I made the right decision.”

Steward has taken the leadership she learned at Vandegrift and has become a very hands-on leader when it comes to her role as president.

“I am always involved with what each team is working on,” Steward said. “I work with the administration directly, specifically as a representative during the Greek Council Meetings, plus keep our alumni advisors updated. The one thing I wish I knew before becoming president is that you do everything, and people turn to you when they have questions or just need guidance.”

However, Steward said that COVID-19 has made it difficult to encourage students to participate in recruitment. She has even mentioned that it was crazy being President this year and having to deal with the unknowns.

“The majority of our rush has been over Zoom,” Steward said. “We have only been able to have a few informal events in person, but they had to be limited due to Bexar County guidelines. This semester our second round formal event was supposed to be in person, but the Greek Life Presidents came together and decided that for the health and safety of the community, the second round will be over Zoom.”

Aside from the COVID-19 setback, Steward said that one of her biggest accomplishments from running the club was getting to work with the head of their Greek Life to create a Diversity Training Program. 

“It implements a weekly curriculum that each fraternity and sorority participates in where we learn about topics surrounding racism,” Steward said.  “We worked with the head of greek life to gather a collection of articles and videos to discuss topics each week. Some of the topics we have discussed are systemic racism, the wealth gap, and intersectionality. It’s been great because we have open dialogues in smaller breakout rooms on Zoom and each club participates in these conversations.” 

While participating in diversity training, Sigma Theta Tau also participates in helping their philanthropy: RespiteCare of San Antonio, a foundation that provides care to children with special needs and complex medical conditions.

“We work with them every semester, where each member volunteers to assist the staff,” Steward said. “We normally just play with the kids outside or help them with crafts. I went to the Valentine’s Day last year and we got to help them make Valentine’s Day cards, so fun!”

Steward is currently studying Business Administration and is planning on graduating from college with a major in Marketing. Steward said that she is currently looking for jobs in Washington D.C. and Texas. 

“I would love to work in a marketing position that allows me to work with a team, as I love collaborating with other people to accomplish an end goal,” Steward said. “I am keeping my options open while I search for jobs in the marketing field.”

Even though Steward is a senior and is graduating this May, she is looking forward to the next chapter of her life where she has the freedom to try new things.

“I am honestly very sad to leave but I know I left the club in a better direction than when I started,” Steward said. “I will miss hanging out with my executive team and meeting new girls each year, but I can’t wait to try new things, and I am going to challenge myself to try something new once a month, especially when the pandemic improves.”