Frena is a kaleidoscope of diversity. Born in Italy, raised in Ethiopia, at the age of 13 Frena and her family moved to China, where she would complete her secondary school education—this would only be the beginning of her travels. Frena eventually found her home at Carleton and is currently working towards an honours degree in law with a minor in economics.
Frena often refers to Carleton as a “beacon of multiculturalism.” As an international student, her background and culturally rich experiences have played a crucial role in shaping and defining her as a leader.
As president of the Carleton Ethiopian Students’ Association (CESA), Frena sought to expand her network of communities and soon found herself involved with CUSA service centres. It was her time volunteering with service centres that inspired Frena to branch out even further, to the greater Carleton community, and take on the challenge of becoming your current vice-president (student services) for CUSA.
This past year has been both humbling and rewarding for Frena and CUSA service centres. Frena and the current executive took a collaborative approach to development and support of service centres—discussing their goals and aspirations for the year and finding ways to support them both operationally and financially the results have been astounding.
Successes this year include the creation of seven new job opportunities within CUSA service centres, the relocation of the CUSA Food Centre for greater service and accessibility, expanding funding avenues for service centres through the CUSA Sponsorship and Grants office, and more engaging and creative service centre events.
“I believe having a passion for something makes you push towards excellence and also makes you work exhaustively to your fullest potential. I think that my passion for our service centres has only deepened during my term as vice-president (student services) with CUSA. I’ve seen how hard CUSA service centre coordinators work and their importance to Carleton’s atmosphere and culture.”
For Frena, her Carleton is defined by services that shift with the needs of the student body, a Carleton that celebrates diversity and culture in all aspects, a Carleton that takes a stand against violence in all its forms and a Carleton that is continuously focused on accessibility.
On January 27th and 28th, vote Frena Hailekiros for vice-president (student services) and her team, Your Carleton!
