Speaking of ... College of Charleston

Lilli Taylor's Journey from Student Government Association President to Disney Intern

• Lilli Taylor • Season 3 • Episode 4

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On this episode we speak with Student Government Association President, Lilli Taylor about her time at the College, her academic pursuits, extracurricular activities, experiences as the student body president, involvement in student organizations, academic achievements, upcoming graduation and future plans like participating in the Disney College Program and pursuing medical school or a master's in public health.

Featured on this Episode:
Lilliana “Lilli” M. Taylor, Student Government Association president, spoke at the ceremony. Taylor is a senior in the Honors College majoring in public health and minoring in music and medical humanities. She is the first Asian American SGA president in College of Charleston history.

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[00:00:00] Broadcasting from Bell Studios at the College of Charleston, you're listening to Speaking of College of Charleston, a podcast produced by the Office of Marketing and Communications. I am your host, George [00:00:20] Johnson. Today in the studio, I have with me Lily Taylor, who is a graduating senior here at the college.

[00:00:27] She is a public health major with minors in music and medical humanities. She's a member of the Honors College and also the student body president. She's here to talk a little about her life here at the [00:00:40] college and also a glimpse of her life outside of the college. Welcome, Lily. Thank you. Thank you for having me.

[00:00:46] Before we jump into this, I want to break the ice a little bit. Let's go through a quick round of questions and answers. I'm going to say one word or a phrase and you just respond with the first thing that comes to your mind. Is that [00:01:00] okay? Okay. I'm a little nervous, but I'm ready. Okay. Number one, what are you reading right now?

[00:01:06] Harry Potter. Harry Potter, okay. Yes, it's a reread. Okay. Who's on your music playlist? I have a lot of K pop on my music playlist and instrumental music from like classical musicians. So K pop, give me one of the songs. [00:01:20] Fancy by Twice. Okay. Favorite store to shop in? Probably Target. Target. Right down the street, Target, or do you go to one of the Super Targets?

[00:01:30] The Super, or Super Targets are a lot of fun, but the Target down on King Street is pretty convenient, so you can walk to it. Okay. Favorite color? Purple. Purple, okay. [00:01:40] Top movie pick. Doesn't have to be recent, just your favorite top movie. I love all Disney music, or Disney movies, so it's it's hard for me to choose just one favorite, so I also like The Greatest Showman, so I might go with that one.

[00:01:51] Okay. Favorite meal? I love pasta. Give me what type of pasta? [00:02:00] Fettuccine Alfredo. Now I'm hungry, okay. Are you a night owl or an early bird? I'm actually a little bit of both. I can stay up pretty late and then wake up very early. It just depends on what I have going on that day.

[00:02:14] But I would consider myself both, honestly. Okay. Famous person to have that [00:02:20] fettuccine Alfredo with? Kate Middleton. Okay. And people always ask people this, favorite spirit animal? I once took, speaking of Harry Potter, I took a Patronus test and I got a dolphin, so I might say that. Can you speak dolphin?

[00:02:33] I wish. Favorite place to vacation since graduation is around the corner, I'm sure you have some [00:02:40] vacations planned, lined up. There's been a lot of places that I've loved to vacation, but this summer I'm actually going to Vietnam, so I'm really excited for that. Wow. The life of a student body president.

[00:02:52] And a graduating senior. Tell me what is a typical day if that even exists for you. What is your typical day like it? Honestly, it [00:03:00] depends on the day. I'm usually very busy, very packed, but I guess just an example. This past Monday. Woke up pretty early in the morning, 9 a. m. I had a meeting with public safety about a fundraiser for SGA and then 10 a.

[00:03:15] m. I had class. It was my health promotion planning and evaluation class. [00:03:20] 11 a. m. I had a meeting with President Hsu. 12 p. m. I had a music as culture class. 1 p. m. I had voice lessons, 2 p. m. I made up a piano lesson, 2. 30 p. m. I had a meeting with Michael Duncan, who's the SGA advisor, 3. 30 p. m. I had a meeting with housing.

[00:03:37] 6 to 8. 30 I have orchestra [00:03:40] and then in between those, I'm, working on emails, working on homework and after orchestra, either like to practice piano since I'm already in Cato, but I also have to go home and do more homework. So that's, I guess like a typical day, but hours and how many hours is that involved?

[00:03:54] There's only 24 hours in the day so when do you sleep? That's where it comes in and be being like [00:04:00] a night owl and an early bird because I have to do both I have To be up late finishing homework, but up early starting the day, but that's a typical day So you balance your class life and then your duties as an officer of the student body?

[00:04:12] You're having to go with meetings with administrators But you're able to balance both of those and you feel pretty confident that you're doing that [00:04:20] I think so. Yes. I, it's, it can be hard sometimes, but with just organizing everything, but I feel like I'm able to balance it pretty well. I'm still doing all right.

[00:04:28] Okay. Okay. So do me a favor. We're going to take a trip down memory lane. You arriving here as a freshman at the college of Charleston. Tell me about that first interaction with [00:04:40] coming to campus. And then walk me a little bit into you being able to infuse yourself into student organizations. And we only have a small amount of time, but in, in a minute or so, tell me about that memory lane trip of four years.

[00:04:53] Yeah. So when I came, it was obviously 2020. In the middle of the pandemic. So as a freshman, it was just a little bit hard to get involved with [00:05:00] student organizations, but I got involved with Chucktown Sound in my freshman year. And then. Also women in STEM and Asian, Asian Student Association.

[00:05:09] Then sophomore year is actually when I joined student government as a sophomore senator. And then I joined a few other clubs like public health society and biology club in addition to the organizations I was already a [00:05:20] part of. And then junior year, I also joined orchestra where we got to perform at the Kennedy center.

[00:05:25] And then I also. Joined the honors college committee as the student representative and then minorities in medicine. And I also became the communications director in SGA. And so then at the end of junior year, that's when I actually ran for student body president and the rest is [00:05:40] history pretty much.

[00:05:40] So running for the student body president position were you nervous? Did you think in your freshman year arriving here that was going to be your goal? Maybe not quite my first steps on campus did I envision myself as the student body president, but I was student body president in high school.

[00:05:58] So I think it always was in the back [00:06:00] of my mind in sophomore year was Oh we do have student government here and you can do a lot with it on a college campus compared to high school. So I think that kind of pushed me and Oh, I can do this. Okay. But you've made history here.

[00:06:10] So as the first Asian American female student body president. Have you faced any challenges? And if you have, how did you overcome them? [00:06:20] So I think with me being Half Chinese and half white. I may not be like as visibly a minority as others So some students discredit my minority identification So when running for president like I made sure to meet with several leaders in minority organizations to talk about my campaign [00:06:40] and like how I plan to use my platform to represent them and advocate for minorities in campus because I wanted to strengthen that relationship between SGA and those organizations here on campus And then another challenge I faced was due to like unfortunate circumstances, I actually ran as a single party ticket against two full tickets.

[00:06:59] It wasn't [00:07:00] really easy, but I was very thankful to have such like a great support system from friends and the student organizations. And they did help elect me as CFC's first Asian American student body president. Again, congratulations to you for being a part of the history of the college. I know that you probably had big initiatives and goals that you had during your [00:07:20] tenure.

[00:07:20] Talk about one that made you the most proud. Just one? Give me a few. I'll give a few. We had, so when elected, my vice president, Adam and I our four pillars were diversity, sustainability, education, and leadership. So I think again, one of the main things I was really proud of was strengthening that relationship between the minority [00:07:40] organizations and SGA.

[00:07:42] But I think one of the main things I am really proud of is I've done research on food insecurity based on the student health survey. And so just working to combat food insecurity here on campus through the fall donation drive raising non perishable items to donate to the Cougar food pantry, but then also just making sure Swipe Away Hunger is [00:08:00] there in the fall and in the spring so students can donate unused meal taps or unused dining dollars to go to students who can't afford it.

[00:08:06] And then also, I was part of a committee in a subcommittee where we worked to relaunch the Excess Food Distribution Program. So at the end of an event, if there's leftover food, just like sending out a notification for students, especially the ones that are food [00:08:20] insecure, so they can come up to 30 minutes after the event is over and just eat the food while it's there.

[00:08:25] And I think that's probably one of my proudest things I've accomplished. Wow. During your time here and Charleston being a place that invites a lot of political figures you recently got a chance to be a part of the historical visit of Vice [00:08:40] President Kamala Harris here at the college.

[00:08:42] What did you do with with Vice President Harris and her visit? So it was. It was definitely the one of the best experiences of my life. It was I was so fortunate to have it. I remember when Dean Gibbs Knotts reached out to me about introducing her, and I was oh my gosh is this really happening?

[00:08:56] Sure, just the feelings of overwhelmment and Definitely. [00:09:00] Yeah. And oh, yeah. So It just it was a blur because it was a quick turnaround. So I remember the, like the White House contacting me and like people emailing me, people calling me and being like, hi, I'm so and so from the White House.

[00:09:11] And it was like, oh my gosh is this real? And so it was like a constant emails and phone calls. And then I remember someone asking me to [00:09:20] like these are the specifics of what we want you to include in your introduction, like talk about this, talk about that. And so then just being on the stage of Satilly and introducing her, It was so exciting.

[00:09:29] It was the wait had definitely built up. So I think everyone was just like ready and everyone was just like so in awe that she was like actually there. And we were very thankful that she came because I know there's a lot going on in the world. And [00:09:40] then I was surprised that a couple months later I actually got, I got a letter in the mail from her just thanking me for doing that and it was autographed and then I got an email from I guess the vice president's office inviting me to her holiday reception party at her house in DC.

[00:09:56] And I remember seeing that email and at first I was like, oh, it's just And then I [00:10:00] looked back on it, and I was like, Oh my gosh I think, is this what I actually think it is? And so then I reached out to the person who I'd been in contact with when she came to campus, and he was like, Oh yes, that's definitely real we would love to see you, Lily.

[00:10:12] And I was like, Oh my gosh This is in the middle of final exams, like I need to figure this out, but all my professors were like totally understanding, were like super [00:10:20] excited for me, and it was just, it was so much fun. I went there with my sister and we had a great time. So you went to Vice President Harris's holiday party.

[00:10:29] In DC, at her house. At her house in DC. Yes. In as much as I'm sure what you saw is just amazing. amazing. Share [00:10:40] a little piece of the feeling of walking into that holiday party. It was I remember it was cold. It was very cold. Yeah. Washington DC, winter time. Yeah. Yeah. And we weren't sure if there's going to be a coat check, but there was it was.

[00:10:52] They had in a tent outside, but you couldn't even tell it was a tent because it was so elaborate and like beautifully decorated. And so you go in there and there's like a band [00:11:00] playing and there's all these like Christmas decorations and like photos and all of these like people. I didn't know who everyone was, but just like the feeling of being there was so exciting.

[00:11:08] And then there was a photo line where you could go see her and her husband and just walk around the first floor of the house. And so it was just, it was so magical. It Wonderful. That's a memory that I know that you will [00:11:20] always hold on to. So you mentioned in the beginning about your different responsibilities and then you infused in there some of your I think what is an extracurricular activity.

[00:11:30] You are a member of Chucktown Sound. Yes I am. And so what instrument do you play in the band? I actually play the violin in the band. Did you bring it with [00:11:40] you? Oh, I did not. Oh, man. Man. You, I wanted to hear that violin sound. Maybe another time. And then you got a chance to play with Chucktown Sound during the the Men's Basketball Championship and also during March Madness.

[00:11:53] Tell us a little bit about that experience. I am, I'm so lucky to have been to the CAA [00:12:00] tournament three times and to March Madness twice, which I never even, honestly, before I came to college, I didn't, I couldn't even tell you what March Madness really was. So I definitely learned a lot about basketball, but just being a part of Chucktown Sound it's been a unique experience because when people think of a band, they don't usually think of a violin being in there.

[00:12:18] And so usually if you say [00:12:20] Oh, like I play the violin Chucktown Sound, people are always like, Oh. I didn't realize we had a violin, and so it's just opening people's eyes to see that, anything is possible. If you really want to be a part of something, you can join it, and the director is super accommodating, always wants to make sure that I don't feel left out, or there's a part I can play, or there's a microphone people could hear me if they [00:12:40] wanted to.

[00:12:40] And then just getting to travel to March Madness was like the coolest thing I could ever imagine. Last year going to Orlando, it was so much fun. And then this year I've never been further west than Tennessee. And so going all the way to Spokane, Washington on a chartered flight, it was just, it was so cool to finally see the west and be in the mountains.

[00:12:59] And then of [00:13:00] course, see our cougars play and cheer them on. What did you do? What else did you do while you were out there? In Spokane, we, so we got there a couple of days early, which was nice. So we did have some time to explore the city. And so we went hiking in the snow, which none of us brought proper snowshoes, but we made it work.

[00:13:15] It was slippery, but fun. And then we did a little ride over a [00:13:20] waterfall. And so we got to see the water and like some rainbows and then just walk around the city and then of course go to the game and cheer them on. So you as you've matriculated through College of Charleston you've had many academic opportunities and these opportunities help you to solidify what you want to do in a, in just a few weeks I'm [00:13:40] sure.

[00:13:40] Tell us about the internship that you are in right now. So at MUSC I have an internship but on top of my bioengineering research that I do there. I'm So for my internship, I work in the MUSC Pediatric Development and Behavioral Medicine Clinic. And so it's for my medical humanities internship course.[00:14:00] 

[00:14:00] And so I go in there once a week and then I get to observe and just shadow like medical professionals that work in different settings, whether that's cystic fibrosis high risk down syndrome, ADHD, autism testing, whatever they're doing since it varies on the day. So it'll depend on what day it is when I go in.

[00:14:17] And for those listeners who may not understand [00:14:20] MUSC, that stands for? The Medical University of South Carolina. Cool, cool. A few weeks ago, I think I saw you in the crowd. We were running a, what was it, a 10k? 10k, yes. 10k. So for those who are listening, Lily is an avid runner. And a few weeks ago, we got an opportunity to participate in the Cooper River Bridge [00:14:40] Run.

[00:14:40] I'm not going to mention my time. I got over it, as the saying goes, for the bridge race. Tell me about some of your your runs that you have done. I don't really consider myself an avid runner, so I feel honored that I've been bestowed this title. Okay. Okay. I just heard about a lot of races, and so I just went on and gave you the avid runner title.

[00:14:59] Thank [00:15:00] you. But how many races have you done? This was, so this was my third 10k, I guess my third bridge run just being here. I guess I've done that three times. I did grow up doing 5k's probably like once a year, whether that's like a reindeer run kind of thing or a midnight flight.

[00:15:15] And then recently in February I actually went down to [00:15:20] Orlando and at Disney I did a half marathon. It was the Disney princess half marathon, which was the first time I had done that in the longest I had ever run. And that was probably the most exciting race I've ever done. What is that, 13. 1?

[00:15:33] 13. 1, yes. Can't forget the 1. It counts. That last little bit really gets you. [00:15:40] Yes. During the bridge race, we talked about health being an important aspect and you got a chance to talk to a local news team about that and how we infuse that into the just participating in types of runs.

[00:15:53] Anything you care to share about that? Why health is important? Definitely. And my sister and her husband, they're a lot more avid [00:16:00] runners than I am. So I've learned a lot from them as well. And so I think one of the things I talked about on the news for like health and running is just like making sure you stick to your same routine and don't try to do anything like that.

[00:16:10] Totally out of the ordinary. If you're going to go for a run, especially like a farther run, like you need to hydrate, you need to eat. If you're going to go out, don't try to, wear brand new [00:16:20] shoes and break them in because you might get blisters. Or if, you don't really drink caffeine, then don't try to drink a bottle of coffee before, before running because you don't know how that's going to end up.

[00:16:29] Yeah. So in the next few weeks what's about to happen? Graduation. And? And? It's fast. It's, we're going to blink and it's going to be here. How [00:16:40] has the college prepared you for life after commencement? Honestly, I think just from the classes that I've taken and like the opportunities that I've been fortunate to have.

[00:16:53] And so being a public health major, I've taken a lot of classes. classes in health and, I've learned about the administrative side of things, but [00:17:00] also the clinical side. So the thing I like about public health is it's a very holistic approach to medicine. You've got to see a lot of different aspects of it.

[00:17:08] And so I've also been able to engage in research opportunities through opportunities with. Advisors, but also my bachelor's essay, which is like the honors thesis. And it's like your final project in the honors [00:17:20] college. So there, I got to create my own research project, present at conferences, giving me more opportunities to, engage with public speaking and just working with a variety of people in like different fields, different backgrounds, different interests.

[00:17:32] And so that's giving me experience as a leader, again, just working with different people. As the student body president, I'm sure you have speaking [00:17:40] assignments at the commencement programs. Tell us a little bit about that. I spoke at the winter commencement ceremony back in December.

[00:17:47] There's only one, one graduation. But then in the spring, we we actually have three commencements. And so I think I'm going to have the opportunity to speak at all three of them, which I'm super excited about. So now it's time for you to give a [00:18:00] shout out to those family and friends who are going to be here cheering you on.

[00:18:03] Who's going to be here in the audience supporting you? I think definitely my mom is coming, my dad, my sister, and her husband. So those are the people. Alright. So we're going to look, we're going to scream out Lily's family. We're just going to shout out Lily's family. And we're again, we're proud of [00:18:20] you and the accomplishments just as they are proud of you.

[00:18:22] Plans after graduation. As I mentioned earlier, I went to Disney, and so that was foreshadowing. I'm actually doing something called the Disney College Program, the DCP, after graduation. It's just like an internship at Disney, and you're a cast member, and they assign you a role. [00:18:40] You live and work there, and I'll be there for a few months.

[00:18:43] So do you know yet which cast member you're going to, or can you say? Not the thing is, I don't know. I wish I could say they, they don't tell you until a month before you arrive. So I would love to be like a character. But I would love to be, a character attendant. I might get stuck as not stuck.

[00:18:59] I might be a [00:19:00] lifeguard or working a ride. I wish I knew. So I'll let you know in a couple of months. Okay. Okay. We want to make sure that you are an active alum of the college. How do you plan to stay connected? With your CFC family, right? I've been very lucky to form so many like friendships and just relationships here at the college and just around [00:19:20] Charleston in general.

[00:19:20] So I would hope that I would, have time to come visit these people, the city, and then I'm also pre med and I don't really know where I'm going to end up for medical school. But if I stay in state, there's a very high possibility I might go to The Medical University of South Carolina, which is just around the corner.

[00:19:38] And so if I'm in [00:19:40] Charleston or whether or not I would love to keep in touch with the people that I've met here because I think it's so important to keep in touch with the relationships that I have. Okay. So that means grad school plans. Definitely. And I'm not sure if we can go back into repeating what are your grad school plans?

[00:19:55] I with medical school, you Taking the MCAT and then applying for medical schools, but [00:20:00] I've also considered the possibility of getting like a master's of public health. I'd love to do that abroad, but weighing the options right now to see where I end up. For our incoming freshman Cougars, what's one thing you wish you knew before starting college that you could pass on to them?

[00:20:18] It's a good question. So I [00:20:20] think that I would tell them to just get involved as early as possible. Meet, genuinely meet as many people as you can the first couple weeks you're here, because those are going to be the people that you stick with throughout, the next four years of your life, or five years, or however many years you're here.

[00:20:34] And I think, For my class, especially, it was a little bit harder to get involved just because of COVID, [00:20:40] and it was nice that, with the Honors College, we lived in Barrie, and City Bistro was right below us, so that was like the hangout hub, you could look out your window and people, and so I think if you don't have an opportunity like that, just Looking for ways that you can get involved.

[00:20:52] If there's an interest, we have so many clubs, from the Taylor Swift Club, to the Cheese Club, to, to Student Government. So there is something [00:21:00] that could probably fit anyone's, idea of a, like a community. And if there isn't one, there's an opportunity to start clubs and meet people who have similar interests as you.

[00:21:08] And so I think just trying to get involved and make those friendships as early on as possible will really last you. Thank you, Lily. We are proud of you. We're going to be shouting along with your [00:21:20] family in celebration of your accomplishments on Commencement Day. And we're excited to hear what's going to become of you after you leave College of Charleston.

[00:21:30] Thank you. It's been a pleasure getting to know you today. Thank you. It was an honor to be here today as well.

[00:21:39] [00:21:40] Thank you for listening to this episode of Speaking of College of Charleston. For more episodes and to read stories about our guests, visit the College of Charleston's official news site, The College Today, at today. charleston. edu. You can also find this and past episodes on all major podcast [00:22:00] platforms.

[00:22:01] This episode was produced by Amy Stockwell from University Marketing and Communications, With recording and sound engineering by Jesse Kunz and Lance Laidlaw from the Division of Information Technology. This is George Johnson. Thanks again and we'll see you next [00:22:20] time.