Amanda Boyle is only a sophomore and yet she’s already accomplished so much! Self-described as “independent, confident and happy,” Amanda is a UPA, a tour guide, a sophomore SGA senator, a member of the crew team and two clubs, a sister of Gamma Lambda Rho and the organizer of “This Week at Iona.” Amanda is also taking six classes, and still manages to get six-seven hours of sleep a night!

1. What is your major?

I’m majoring in mass communications with a concentration in public relations. I’m also planning to minor in marketing or management.

Originally I came here because I really liked the idea of being a sports broadcaster, so I knew I wanted to do something communications-related, just not exactly sure which concentration. And then taking more classes and doing some more outside research, I found that PR was more my outlet. I’m more the marketing person, I like event planning. And I think having a business background with the minor kind of gives it a little more edge. It’s a lot; I’m taking six classes.

2. What’s a fun fact about you?

At home I work for a bakery and I deliver wedding cakes. I love the show Cake Boss and I really do work at a family bakery. I get to deliver 3, 4, 5-tier wedding cakes and decorate them with flowers. I don’t necessarily make them, but I love doing deliveries because you get to see the different set-ups and venues.

3. So I know you’re on the crew team; what was your motivation behind joining?

Well, I’ve always been a part of a team sport. Prior to crew, I did little league softball, basketball, soccer, and track.

I went to the meeting and was really excited to start it, but saw the paperwork (and was kind of taken back. Fred Carter actually pushed me to get [the paperwork] done). So I did all the paperwork, went to my first practice and I just liked learning something new. Then we started out on the water and it was a whole new adventure. I liked being pushed and getting better numbers. I joke all the time, I never thought I’d choose a sport all about numbers, but it really is a big mental sport; I really enjoy it.

4. Speaking of being a team player, you joined the sorority Gamma Lambda Rho. What inspired you to go Gamma?

I like to try new things. In high school I never gave Greek life a lot of thought. I guess you could say Brianna [Hines] pushed me in a sense. I met [Brianna] during the Go New Ro mission trip that I did; she was my leader and I just saw her wearing letters. So during Greek Week, I went out to the recruitment process, got along with the girls right away, followed through with the process and I’m loving every minute of it. It really is a family away from your family; I love it. Looking back, I never thought I’d do it, but I’m glad I did.

5. So you’re a part of crew and Greek life, are you involved in anything else around campus?

I am an undergraduate programming assistant (UPA) in the Office of Student Development so I work with clubs like the Players, Singers, Pipe Band and Edmund Rice and help them plan their events. Then I also, a lot of people don’t know this, am the face behind this Week at Iona. I’m the one who gathers all the information and types that up for then Jason to send out every Friday. So I pretty much know what’s going on around campus all the time. I’m also a tour guide so that allows me to talk about how much I love Iona on a regular basis.

I’m also on two E-boards: the Marketing Club and ICTV. I joined Marketing Club because of my major and then ICTV because I want to be a sports broadcaster. I’m currently the Vice President of Operations. I pretty much oversee the shows that go on.

6. What’s the reason you’re interested in going into sports broadcasting?

Growing up, I was always playing sports and I didn’t necessarily know that I’d be playing a sport in college, so I figured sports broadcasting was perfect because I could still talk about sports. In high school, I shadowed an anchor in NBC Studios in Connecticut where I learned I also had a passion for television. So I thought sports broadcasting was a good combo of two of my passions: sports and television.

7. Being only a sophomore, where would you like to venture next in terms of extracurricular activities?

I view myself as a leader, whether I like it or not, so I kind of wanted to get my feet wet in all of these different things and now I’m going through, “well what do I want to pursue?” I’ve given a lot of thought to ICTV and Marketing because they’re both clubs that I’m very actively involved in, and I’m actually deciding to run for President of Marketing.

I’m also a senator and I love going to SGA meetings. I like being aware of what’s going on around campus. So I figured if I’m President of a club, I can still go to SGA but drop the senator position.

8. How do you balance everything?

I structure my time and I schedule accordingly. I literally will plan out my day hour by hour and write everything I need to get done and everywhere I need to be. I make lots of lists of things to get done. I don’t know what to do with free time; I like to stay busy and active.

9. Whether it’s a faculty member, staff member, or student, who do you think has been really important in your experience here at Iona?

It may sound a little cliche, but Brianna [Hines]. She was the first person I met at Iona; she was the leader of my Go New Ro Mission Trip and then my orientation leader. I kind of saw a lot of myself in her in the sense that she is an independent leader. She’s very studious, she’s a bio major, makes time for all her studies yet she’s very involved on campus. When I was pledging for my sorority and I found out she was my big, it all clicked and now I live with her. I view her not only as a mentor but also as an older sister and a best friend.

10. Where do you see yourself in ten years?

Hopefully, I will be professionally established by then. I would also like to be a mom before the age of thirty. I think I’d be a cool mom. So, hopefully living in the New England area, raising a family and working in sports in either New York or Boston.