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The Oklahoma Memorial Union is said to be the heart of campus. If the Union is the heart of campus, then I consider the Union Programming Board (UPB) the heartbeat. At the root of it all, this was where I found my home on campus. UPB is known for hosting numerous events at the Union that cater to a diverse group of students, but UPB is something else for me. UPB established a home for me at The University of Oklahoma. 
Starting out as a freshman, the landscape of a university with a student population larger than my hometown was intimidating. I heard testimonies from many people that the key to finding a home in college was to get involved. Right from the get-go, I decided to get involved with UPB after hearing a pitch from a member at a Coca-Cola social. I attended the first meeting and I was immediately immersed in the craziness that was UPB. The lasting moment that sealed the deal was my interaction with the then-Vice President. She introduced herself and made the effort to get to know me. During every subsequent encounter with her, she remembered my name and the things we talked about.  
The interaction set the tone that I currently associate with UPB – home. Every meeting, every event, and every time I walk into the Union, I feel at home. I always see familiar faces when I am at an event. I see the faces that made me stay in UPB as a freshman. Throughout my first year as a member, I went from having little campus involvement to being very involved. The people there made the effort to keep me feeling welcomed. They also gave me the opportunity to be break out of my shell and develop useful skills that transferred to my other involvement.
Two years later, I am a junior serving on the exec for UPB my second time. In the past two years since my general member days, I was able to use the confidence and creativity UPB equipped me with to create an event. I got to bring quality to UPB’s photography and cement my name as a photographer on campus. I gave the “media director” position the renaissance it needed. UPB was able to serve as a stepping stone for my other campus involvement. After gaining confidence as a campus leader, I was able to apply to and participate in Camp Crimson as a small group leader.
While I was able to benefit from the organization, I do not see that as the only thing I got out of it. I think back to my freshman year whenever the then-Vice President reached out to me and made me feel like family. Developing interpersonal connections is actually a huge part of being on exec. I was able to do the same with many of the members that I worked with. One member specifically comes to my mind. She was someone who expressed interest in photography, so I gave her a position as a photography lead. In the year that followed, I got to watch her gain confidence in being a campus leader, change the organization’s photography, and become a close friend of mine. This is one prominent example that shows how much I put into an organization and its members, as a result of what the organization gave to me as a freshman. 
Of course, the main purpose of UPB is to provide free and diverse programs in the Oklahoma Memorial Union. I have discovered that there is so much more to this.
Internally, UPB engages students, encourage leaders, and enriches lives. The “3 E’s” is what made this student organization a home for me. It provided events for me to do nearly every Friday night, it allowed me to develop my own leadership skills, and lastly, it made my college experience worthwhile. For people looking for a place to get involved in, then I hope my story encourages them to check out UPB and the other student organizations that campus offers.

 

Francis Phan 
Class of 2017 
Psychology major 
Mustang, OK
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