With commencement only a few short weeks away, graduating senior Daphne Galatas, a communication arts major, has been reflecting on the many opportunities she’s had at UNH Manchester. Opportunities, she said, that have made her college career a wild success.
When she was a student at Goffstown High School, Galatas did not consider college an option for her. She moved to the U.S. from Greece when she was 15 years old. In Greece, she explained, your career path is decided for you. At a young age her talent for linguistics was obvious, so the plan for Galatas was to become a teacher of philosophy and languages. She carried that idea with her to Goffstown, planning to forego college and instead return to Greece to pursue a teaching career.
But her English teacher at Goffstown High argued the value of higher education, and he encouraged Galatas to change her plan – to go to college and get a degree.
“I told him I didn’t feel confident,” she said. “He told me I was going to do it. That I would get there. He said that with a degree I could accomplish greatness.”
And Galatas believed him.
She applied and was accepted to UNH Manchester. It had everything she sought in a college – it was affordable, close to home and had small class sizes. Galatas said she could never see herself as just a number in a huge class. At UNH Manchester it was immediately evident, even on her initial tour, that the professors cared about each student as an individual. Teachers knew their students’ names and students received one-on-one time.
Galatas didn’t declare a major at first because she wasn’t exactly sure what she wanted to do. UNH Manchester did not have a linguistics program like she would have taken in Greece. But when she discovered the Communication Arts program, Galatas said, it looked far more interesting than linguistics ever had.
“I’ve had a lot of opportunities to help change my course,” she said.
Very soon Galatas will officially be a first-generation college graduate. While she did declare communication arts as her major, she has continually altered her plans on how she wants to use the degree.
“I see myself in a service industry using foreign language skills and culture,” she said.
She wanted to translate, maybe be an interpreter. She thought about being a police officer, even completing an internship with the Goffstown Police Department. She thought about working for a U.S. Embassy, or the U.N. She considered a career in Homeland Security as well.
“Being exposed to many things helped narrow down my options,” Galatas said.
“Many things” is an understatement – Galatas’ list of extracurriculars is nothing short of awe-inspiring, particularly when you consider the fact that she was also often working multiple jobs. For the record, she casually mentions that she is “only” working one full-time job now as a security officer for the college.
Galatas said that her college career has come around full cycle.
She began her freshman year struggling to keep up academically. She worked less and focused more on her studies, with the help of English for Speakers of Other Languages and the Center for Academic Enrichment.
It was during her sophomore year that UNH Manchester really began to feel like a “second home.” Galatas joined the Soccer Club, Brick and Mortar theater group and the dance group Classy Cats, and was a member of the Student Activities Fee Allocation Committee.
As a junior Galatas founded Cinema Club, became president of the Politics & Society Club, was a student panel ambassador for the college, joined the campus LGBT club Common Grounds and was an orientation leader. She also organized a diversity event entitled “Calling All Cultures,” which gave students the opportunity to celebrate the many cultures of fellow UNH Manchester students, faculty and staff. The event was well received, earning Galatas the 2011 Diversity Committee Award for Multiculturalism.
Now, she is revisiting the academic focus she had her freshman year. But this time it is because she chooses to, not because she is struggling. Galatas dedicated countless hours to her oral presentation for the Undergraduate Research Conference, titled “The Modern Greek Tragedy,” which was inspired by her trip to Greece last fall for her independent study. She was appalled by Greece’s handling of Syrian refugees and other asylum seekers, and was inspired to share her findings.
And next? Galatas admits she “likes the academic life.” She has been accepted into the UNH School of Law master’s degree program for International Criminal Law and Justice. She said she sees herself working at an embassy or in international affairs and being actively involved with refugee programs.
Whatever path Galatas takes, her goal is the same.
“I would like to make an impact on people’s lives in as much of a positive way as I can.”
