Emi Matsuura, VP of Operations, interviews former Chapter Vice-president
Grace Cruz. Grace graduated from U.C.,
Berkeley. As a Chapter officer, Grace won the Regional Scholar Award
and was a member of the All-California Academic Team.
Emi: Why did you participate in Beta Theta
Omicron?
Grace: The idea of an international honor
society that was not solely based on academic achievement sparked my
interest. There were a number of activities on campus that were spearheaded
or jointly organized by Beta Theta Omicron, such as the AIDS walk, food
pantry, and breast cancer walk that I was interested in participating
in. The chapter gave me an avenue to explore these activities, which
I ended up really enjoying—for the most part, because of the friendships
that I forged during these events.
Emi: Do you think the experience of Phi
Theta Kappa helped you in your major or in transferring?
Grace: Very much so. Having come from the
Philippines, I did not have much extra curricular activities going
into college. Because of FQK, my transfer/major
application to UC Berkeley became pretty robust. The scholarships,
awards, and membership in FQK really helped
make the transfer process so much easier. Not only did my experience
in FQK help with my transfer to Cal, but
it also strengthened my resume, which I am now benefitting from, working
in the industry.
Emi: What did you gain through your experience
as an officer of Beta Theta Omicron Chapter? and what is most valuable?
Grace: Being that the four Hallmarks of
FQK are scholarship, fellowship, leadership,
and Service I always like to think of my FQK
experience in terms of these Hallmarks. As an officer, I got the opportunity
to work with people not only from our chapter but from the other local
chapters and regions as well. The friendships that I made with these
people have truly made a difference in my life. My leadership certainly
emerged and became one of my strongest suits, even now in my career.
Getting the chance to serve different groups of people, be it through
fundraisers for different diseases, or mentoring children after school
was very rewarding. FQK gave me the chance
to be able to give back to my community and I think that this was the
most rewarding experience of all.
Emi: Did membership in FQK
make any difference when you applied for jobs?
Grace: Certainly. Membership in FQK
is one of the first things that I share when people ask me about some
of the things that I have been proud of. Interviewers are certainly
intrigued with FQK and when I share what
the organization is about, a lot of people have told me that they also
wish that they could've experienced what I did with the organization.
Emi: What has Beta Theta Omicron meant
to you?
Grace: Personally, I think of BQO
as an extended family of mine. A lot of my friends at present have been
friends that I met while inBQO. It has been
a huge influence in where I am now in my life
