In July DuJuan Smith will represent the student body as the newest Student Trustee. With his experience guiding him, Smith wants to maintain student-focused as he helps to oversee some of the operations on campus.

Orlando Lara: What are your plans for the position?

DuJaun Smith: I plan to work with students more, a lot of student advocacy type stuff. I plan to do a lobby day in Springfield. A day where we can take students out to lobby and get involved with who our representatives are and to begin to even request more money for higher education and NIU. For the most part [it is going to be] a lot of outreach, talking to students. I think that’s one of the things that has made me really successful here at NIU; I seem to really connect with a diverse pool of individuals and get their perspective and bring those perspectives to the table.

OL: What unique quality do you feel you bring to the office of Student Trustee?

DS: I believe I bring my NIU Huskie Spirit and experiences combined with my genetically, electrifying personality.

OL: Why do you think you deserve the position?

DS: I am qualified for the position because I am knowledgeable of how the university operates on multiple levels. I have a holistic perspective on life as a student at NIU and can translate those experiences to positively impact the student body.

OL: You’ve been involved with other student organizations. What drew you to them?

DS: Actually, when I first came to NIU, I really just wanted to be involved. I realized that I was paying for a lot of services, so I just naturally started going to different services and programs and I just wanted to get involved because I wanted NIU to be a really good place to be.

OL: You are also in a lot of organizations outside of the student body. Do you have time to do anything else?

DS: Oh, yeah. Well, I’m a Type A Personality, very organized, live by color-coded calendars, that type of thing. I usually have my days planned to the minute and so because of that, I always make time for relaxation. But in my spare time a lot of what I do is take walks, listen to music, watch TV and just hang out with friends. So, I’ve been able to find a really delicate balance. It’s a tricky dance, but I have a really good balance of being able to be involved and still be able to have time for me, too.

OL: What’s your favorite book?

DS: My favorite book is “The Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison.

OL: Why is that?

DS: Well, I was a sociology major when I was here. And it was probably one of the very first books that I got to read that really talked about the life of an African-American in a predominantly white society. And for me, it was really the first book I got to read that was really eye opening in terms of being able to read and relate to some of the experiences the book really talked about.

OL: You went to Ghana for the study abroad program. How was that?

DS: Yes, two summers in a row. I believe that going to Ghana, particularly that first time, was one of the defining moments in my life. I really got a chance to step outside of my comfort zone and to really see how others lived and it was mind blowing. Particularly, I had always done a lot of reading on slavery and the slave trade, so I was really knowledgeable on the literature, but to actually visit one of the slave dungeons, and to actually be there was a completely different experience than just reading about it. It was more than something I read, I began to really feel what had happened and what was going on. You could still smell human flesh in a lot of those walls. And for me, it was just the moment where my head connected to my heart. That’s when I knew, when I got back to NIU, I was going to be a person that wanted to have an impact, because I felt that it was my responsibility.

OL: You were the Centennial Homecoming King in 2006. That’s kind of surprising looking at your background.

DS: Yeah, you look at my background thinking student government, that type of thing, and then homecoming king. I’m a pretty grounded guy. It’s interesting because in high school I was elected Most School Spirit. I used to be a photographer, so the more and more I got involved, the more and more I began to just get to know people, get to talk to people. Even now, when I’m a grad student — a little bit removed — I still get the opportunity to sit and talk to students all the time. I guess it’s just a gift of mine. NIU has really given me so much, in terms of experiences, that I felt like being able to represent the university as the homecoming king, the centennial homecoming king, it was only perfect.

OL: You were the founder of the Campus Security Fund and the Get Out of Debt Office. Could you tell me a little about those two?

DS: The Campus Security Fund is a fund that was created through the Student Association to help alleviate some of the costs for student organizations. Depending on the venue and the day of the event, it could cost between $2,000 and $4,000 to have a party. And a lot of our student organizational budgets just did not have that. So the more I began talking to students, I really began to see that there was a need. So I presented some legislation to the student body and it got approved. And now there’s $30,000 allocated annually to help alleviate some of those costs for student organizations. It really came out of hearing the student’s interest, hearing this was a problem and really working to make sure it had been addressed. And it’s still in existence today.

The Get Out of Debt Office was almost the same way. I just really believed in the importance of really knowing how to get out of debt and how can you prevent it. I worked with Student Legal [Association], and they were amazing, and I just put the same legislation together and the Senate thought it was a valuable idea, so they approved it. And that is still in existence today, too. I definitely plan on working with both of those programs through this year just do an assessment to see where we are – how successful it’s been, how many students we are actually reaching and in what ways can we enhance some of the efforts.

OL: You interned at Texas A & M University a couple of years ago. Why did you go out of state?

DS: I was a part of a program that was part of NASPA [National Association of Personnel Administrators], which is a higher education professional organization, which has this program called the NUF program, which is NASPA Undergrad Fellows Program. And it pairs a faculty member who is a part of NASPA with a student who is interested in being in higher education. And they do a program where you can either do a leadership development institute or an internship. I chose the internship and I had to select from a pool of like 20 or 30 schools and pick the top five and I interviewed with them. I got offers from Syracuse and Texas A & M, and I chose Texas A & M because I had never been to Texas and I had never heard goods things about Texas, either. So I said, “I want to see if they’re real.” And I loved it there, loved it. I am strongly considering going back when I decide to pursue a doctorate degree. And as a NUF participant, I got to do the internship and the leadership development institute, and I was very happy about that. For which, they actually elected me the graduation speaker for the leadership development institute. It wasn’t until they asked me to do this biography that, I guess, I never written it down in all in one place, but I was kind of reading it and I’m like, “Wow, surprisingly I have done a lot of stuff.” I’ve done stuff but I didn’t think it was as much as it seems. But even still, I think that’s one of the things, there’s so much still that needs to be done, not just at NIU but in general. So, I’ll pretty much imagine that I’ll be one of those people who is always doing something.

OL: What mark would you like to leave at NIU?

DS: I would like my mark to be the fact that I was student-centered and anything is possible and anyone can do it. I was a first-generation college student. So I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know what to do, how to do it. It really took me getting out there, stepping outside of my comfort zone and just doing it to actually figure out that I can do it. And no matter what goal I set, even if there was always an initial disappointment, in the long run, I always made sure that it worked. And so I’m blessed in that extent. And I just think a lot of people don’t realize that they too have a lot of the same capabilities, if not more, to really be able to accomplish a lot, particularly here at NIU. This is really one of the most unique institutions that I believe is actually more concerned with students and student affairs and really contributing to share governance. This institution allows students a lot of opportunities to really get involved and to really make their college experience more than what they see on TV. And I just think it’s a matter of getting out there and truly taking advantage of the opportunities. I want my legacy to be a testament of this is what happens if you get involved, stay involved and love what you’re doing.

OL: What are your plans for after graduation?

DS: I want to enroll in a culinary arts school. I’m looking to get a degree in culinary arts with a certification in baking and pastries and at the same time I want to be a health counselor in a community health setting. So my plan is to begin researching and developing cooking therapy as one of my special relations as a counselor. So really, begin to use some of my skills and strategies from counseling to help people while we’re actually learning to cook and preparing different meals and that will be from an individual level to group sessions, even couples. And so, I really just want to focus on being a counselor with a specialization in working with populations affected with HIV and AIDS, working with cooking therapy, having my own private practice and being a personal chef.

OL: That’s a lot on your plate there.

DS: Yeah. It’s nothing. I’ve had good practice. I’ve done a lot, so I’m prepared to do a lot more.