Sister Spotlight: Lydia Elliott

Lydia Elliott is a junior at Ball State University, majoring in Speech Language Pathology and minoring in ASL and Deaf Studies.

Lydia did not plan on going to Ball State at first. She didn't have any family that had gone to ball state, but had a couple of friends who were going to attend the university. She ended up pursing Ball State for the scholarship opportunities. At first she was hesitant, but in the end she decided to make the best of it. She joined an early start program where she became eager to become involved in the Ball State community. Since then, she couldn't imagine ending up at a different university. From the irreplaceable relationships she has built, opportunities, and memories, she knows that Ball State is her home. Lydia described that, "Now it feels like a piece of my heart is at Ball State!"

Lydia chose her major due to a speech impediment she had when she was younger. Because of this, she had trouble communicating with her friends and family. She had went through years of speech therapy and was able to overcome difficulties and challenges she endured through the aid and support of her family and her speech therapist. This inspired Lydia to give others the same opportunities she had and led her to wanting to pursue a career in speech pathology. In the future, she hopes to serve a non-profit organization in an area of children's rehab, specifically with patients that are recovering from cleft lip/palate.

Lydia loves people. She is passionate about loving others and cherishes spending time with her friends, family, and even people she has just met. Lydia strongly identifies with her faith and has developed a passion for SpringHill, a children's camp. She has spent numerous weekends and summers working at the camp. During the summer of 20021, she will be serving as a seasonal director and is really looking forward to creating experiences for campers and staff. Through her love and experience at SpringHill, she has learned so much about leadership and community. Lydia described, "Fun fact: I never would have found out about SpringHill if it weren't for AOII." Lydia doesn't watch television or movies often, rather she loves anything DIY and crafts! She enjoys sewing and embroidery and making friendship bracelets for camp. She loves to play puzzles, board games, and is ALWAYS in the mood to play Just Dance! She also enjoys being outside, traveling, and day trips.

Lydia has many accomplishments and we couldn't be more proud of her. She described how honored she is to be recently elected as AOII Kappa Kappa's next president! She currently works as a childcare staff at Oaks church in Muncie and loved the opportunity to work as a childcare coordinator. She has also worked at Dehority Hall front desk and was a hall ambassador. Lydia said, "I love and miss Deho!" Lydia is also very involved in Cru at Ball State and has been on the leadership team for Greek Cru for the past two years and had the opportunity to serve as the MAC this past semester. In high school, Lydia was class president for four years, awarded Homecoming Queen, and graduated co-valedictorian. We are so proud of Lydia and cannot wait to see what she does for Kappa Kappa as president!

As for AOII, Lydia describes that, "AOII has taught me so much." Lydia always liked the idea of a soriority, yet she didn't think she would do it. When she first came to Ball State for the early start program, one of her mentors was in Greek Life and encouraged her to look into it. She decided to go through recruitment and hasn't looked back sense. She fell in love with AOII and was shocked when she was invited, "to be a part of such an amazing group of women." She has connected so well with so many sisters in the chapter. AOII has taught Lydia, "...how to love others that are very different from me, as well as learning how to be loved by others." Despite touch times, they have made Lydia stronger. She has never been involved and totally immersed in a such a group before that has encouraged her and challenged her. She has gained memories and friendships that will last her a lifetime. Lydia closed, "Four years is far too short. I will always be experiencing the priceless benefits from AOII."

Show Lydia some love and follow her on Instagram!