Invasion of Privacy: Mia Donaldson reminds us all to relax
Mia Donaldson enjoying some fresh air before she graduates in just a few short weeks (photo courtesy of Mia Donaldson).
Mia Donaldson is a senior English literature and American studies major with a minor in political science who currently serves as editor-in-chief for Iris Magazine, SUNY Geneseo’s first and only queer literary magazine. She is very involved on campus within the English department, serving as a student voice in meetings and when considering potential new faculty. We here at The Lamron were fortunate enough to have her among our ranks as a member of the e-board during her sophomore and junior years, as well as the first semester her senior year. Due to general busyness, she did step down from her position as copy editor this semester, but we still felt drawn to include her in our interview series involving graduating e-board members—we hope you will allow for this discrepancy.
Originally from Poughkeepsie, NY, Donaldson spent her high school years being prepared academically at the small, but rather rigorous Spackenkill High School. Here she feels she got her start in supporting the humanities and noticing how socioeconomic class can affect academic performance. Her school was rather science-heavy, and even though she enjoyed that this pushed her to learn how to work hard at subjects that one might be less passionate about or struggle with, it also created a space for her to be an outstated supporter of her school’s English department amongst her future pre-med peers. The school’s affluent student body also seemed a bit discordant with her own upbringing. This planted a seed in the way she would continue to investigate the politics of education, as most of her peers—unlike herself—had tutors for the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Through this it seemed that there was an increased likelihood of high scores that would allow them into prestigious schools and grant better chances of scholarships.
With these bases set, Donaldson then found herself entering college here at SUNY Geneseo at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. In a desire to not bog down this article with commonplace observations of the procedural and social differences this resulted in for her freshman year, she instead focused on how she felt this time gave her further room to examine how lucky she was, in some ways, to be in college at such a time of economic uncertainty. These building notes would continue to inform the ways she thought about her time in college and how she approached her studies in her majors and minor.
She remarks, though, that in these early years of college, she experienced quite the quick-onset of burnout—having “pushed [herself] too hard, too soon.” She struggled with this, as she didn’t want to lose the academic momentum she had built, but also felt as though she was unable to give the best of herself to her academics, professors, peers, or self! In her junior and senior years, she made a point to dedicate more time to herself alone, and to not try to spread herself too thin.
She remarks how joining Iris and The Lamron might have signed her up for further rigor, but they also provided her with skills and community she found to be valuable. She notes that these, “…two organizations really pushed me, mostly in a good way.” Here, Mia started her sophomore year as the sports editor—“…weird to think about, I know!”—before taking a role as copy editor. At Iris, she was one of the founding members and the only one who has not yet graduated. She began her role as managing editor and has served as the magazine's editor-in-chief this academic year. Donaldson made sure to remark that while both of these clubs have asked a lot of her creatively and time-wise, she kept at it due to her enjoyment of the work being done at the core of these groups alongside the clubs’ supportive and fun environments.
Looking forward, Donaldson plans to take a year off after graduation to maintain her well-being and do some deserved relaxing. She will then pursue graduate school. While more intensely looking into PhD programs—something she has been interested in since high school—Donaldson is willing to go into a master’s program if the competitive PhD programs don’t pan out. She is particularly interested in schools with student-run research or creative writing journals to be able to continue the work she began in her undergraduate career and has found a deep sense of fulfillment within.
In her two tidbits of parting wisdom, Donaldson tells us readers that even if these sentiments seem in conflict with each other, finding the balance between them has been what she feels has made her time here so successful. Without further ado, then, make sure to, “Have fun, hang out, do all the college things you think you are supposed to do—or maybe not…” and “Take school seriously!” After all, you are paying to be here.