As a student battling anxiety, 19-year-old Lana Fayad never imagined being at the forefront of student clubs.
“I wasn’t great with social interaction, and fostering lasting friendships proved to be a challenge for me,” she says.
It wasn’t until her high school journey that Lana found her place in extracurricular activities. Now, she has an active presence in more Germanna clubs than she can count.
A Fredericksburg native, Lana attended Courtland High School, where she was determined to have a better experience than she did in the previous grades.
“Unlike elementary and middle school, I had a great high school experience,” says Lana. She started making friends, and even joined student clubs to take herself out of her comfort zone.
“With my anxiety, I wanted to put myself in more social situations to combat that,” she says. As a result, she joined her high school’s Student Council Association and was elected as president. This was eye-opening for Lana, as she realized her passion for advocating for others and taking on extra responsibility outside of her schoolwork.
As her high school journey came to a close, Lana looked to her school counselor for guidance on her next steps. “I had a great relationship with my counselor, so I trusted her judgement. When she recommended that I come to Germanna after high school, I knew it was the best decision,” she says. Lana saw Germanna as the best option because of its affordability and proximity to home.
Lana entered Germanna right after graduating high school, where she is currently pursuing an associate degree in general studies. After starting at Germanna, she immediately involved herself in the Student Government Association as a student senator.
“Being a senator for my first two semesters at Germanna helped me make lots of friends, and it allowed me to become involved with the student body again, just as I had in high school. It was almost nostalgic for me,” she says.
Lana decided to run for a leadership position in SGA, and at the end of her first year at Germanna, she was elected as the vice president for the 2023-2024 school year. In her new role, Lana will help the president in any task they need assistance with, have a presence at all Germanna events, and advocate for the entire student body.
Outside of SGA, Lana is active in many other student clubs at Germanna, recently landing a leadership role in the College’s Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society as the chapter’s vice president of fellowship. She has even established some clubs of her own. “I’m excited to be starting up a book club, an environmental club, an art club, and a women’s studies club,” she says.
As she heads into her last year at Germanna, Lana is looking forward to her upcoming involvement at the College. She hopes to continue doing things outside of her comfort zone and making a positive impact on the Germanna community.
“Being involved at Germanna gives me a sense of worth—like I’m a part of the Germanna family," she says.
After graduating, Lana plans to transfer to a four-year university to study psychology, pursuing a career as a mental health therapist or psychiatrist.