A September in College Park means many things: football games, cooler weather, walks across campus, and my favorite part: new extracurricular opportunities! Six QUESTees took advantage of new opportunities this fall and decided to join our staff here at QUESTPress, and we couldn’t be more excited. For those of you who have never read a QUESTPress article, welcome! We’re happy to have you. QUESTPress is QUEST’s student-run publication released digitally once a month. We have a team of eight writers, who you’ll get to know below. 

The two Editors-in-Chief of QUESTPress this year are Tanu Kulkarni and Heather Bacon. 

To start off, my name is Tanu Kulkarni, and I’m a Cohort 34 senior majoring in Finance and Operations Management & Business Analytics. Aside from QUESTPress, I’m the VP of Alumni Relations for Alpha Kappa Psi, one of Smith’s professional business fraternities, a TA for BMGT 190H, and the VP of Strategy and Operations for SUSA, which is the Smith School’s student government. I joined QUESTPress in fall 2019 before I had even taken my first QUEST class, so it was truly my first taste of the QUEST experience! I’ve been involved on the Webmaster and Analytics committee and am now serving as a Co-Editor-in-Chief with Heather Bacon. QUESTPress has allowed me to form so many meaningful connections with QUESTees beyond my cohort, including alumni and faculty. I’m excited that I get to pay it forward to the new staff this year! 

Tanu Kulkarni (Q34)

Heather Bacon of Cohort 34 is a senior majoring in Systems Analysis and Design. She joined QUESTPress in fall 2020 as a staff writer and webmaster, where she gained a balance of both technical and creative writing skills. Aside from QUESTPress, Heather is the President of Alpha Kappa Psi, one of Smith’s professional business fraternities. She’s also a Camp Counselor for Camp Kesem, a national nonprofit which provides free summer camps and year-long support to children affected by a parent’s cancer. Heather explained that one of her main goals for QUESTPress this year is to “continue to bring together the QUEST community and celebrate the accomplishments of QUEST students and alumni!”

Heather Bacon (Q34)

Heather and I selected six rockstar writers to join our staff this year! 

Sona Chudamani is a sophomore Computer Science student and member of Cohort 37. Aside from QUEST, Sona is a Girls Who Code TA, where she introduces 20-30 middle and high school girls to programming. She is also a research fellow in the Clark School of Engineering, where she is investigating the culture of the UMD Science, Technology, and Society Scholars program, with respect to developing engineering students’ ethical reasoning and sense of social responsibility. When asked why she applied to QUESTPress, Sona said “The main reason I joined QPress was that I wanted to get more involved in QUEST, as well as clubs on campus in general. I have always enjoyed writing stories for myself, but now I get to share that love with everyone!” Aside from her involvement on campus, Sona is also a huge Taylor Swift fan – to the point where she can name every single Taylor Swift song just from listening to the first few seconds!

Sona Chudamani (Q37)

Our next new staff member is Brianna Mathieu, a sophomore Computer Science major in Cohort 37. Brianna has lots of experience writing through her involvement with Maryland’s HerCampus, a publication geared towards women on college campuses. She joined QUESTPress because she wants to develop her skills of interviewing others and showcasing success stories, including those of QUEST alumni and students. Outside of writing, Brianna loves running, drawing, cooking/baking, and anything outdoors! She also greatly enjoys traveling and has been to more than half of all of the U.S. states! 

Brianna Mathieu (Q37)

Michelle Castro of Cohort 37 is a sophomore International Business major and Professional Writing Minor. When asked why she joined QUESTPress, Michelle explained that she has goals for both herself as an individual writer and for QPress as a whole. Individually, Michelle said that she wants to refine her writing skills not only professionally but also creatively. “QUESTPress gives me the opportunity to explore my creative writing side without the academic component in terms of grading,” she shared. For the entire organization, Michelle is excited to add her perspective as a first-generation Latinx student to the newsletter. Outside of QUEST, Michelle keeps herself very busy with her roles as the Treasurer of Maryland Latin Dance Club, a Mentor for the Smith Start Program, and an Incentive Awards Program student. A fun fact about Michelle is that she went on a week-long road trip to Acadia National Park in Maine right before the semester started!

Michelle Castro (Q37)

Nataraj Shivaprasad is another sophomore Cohort 37 student that joined our team this year. Though he is an Electrical Engineering major, Nataraj has plenty of experience with publications through his role as an assistant managing editor at The Diamondback. In terms of QUESTPress, Nataraj hopes that he’ll be able to get some video clips covering interesting QUEST activities. He also hopes to help QPress’ online presence grow both in terms of engagement but also to expand to new categories covered! Welcome to the team, Nataraj!

Nataraj Shivaprasad (Q37)

Our next staff spotlight is Abby Wexler, a Cohort 37 sophomore majoring in Finance and Operations Management & Business Analytics. Aside from QUEST, Abby also holds a leadership position within her sorority Alpha Epsilon Phi and is a Co-Project Manager for TAMID, which is one of the consulting organizations within the Smith School. When asked why she joined QUESTPress, Abby said that she hoped to step out of her comfort zone and get better at talking to new people! She also wants to connect with more QUEST students. When asked if there’s someone in particular she wants to get to know better, she mentioned fellow Cohort 37 member Becca Schindler!

Abby Wexler (Q37)

Last but not least, QUESTPress gained the skills of Siri Rao, a Cohort 38 sophomore majoring in Finance and minoring in Math. When asked why she joined QUESTPress, she mentioned that she wanted to be able to work on social pieces that allow her to add her own stylistic edge to her writing and have fun! Siri is involved all across campus through her roles as the VP of Service for SUSA, a dancer on the Maryland Bhangra team, and working on research with Professor Sahajpal from the geographical sciences department. Siri is also familiar with a lot of different places within the U.S.: in fact, she’s moved 8 times throughout her life within the country!

Siri Rao (Q38)