Some students seek part-time employment at local restaurants or retail stores, but Danielle Dubose, a freshman business administration major, took matters into her own hands -- literally.
Since January, Danielle has been offering hair-braiding services to fellow students from the convenience of her dorm room.
"My roommate complains about the hair all over the floor, but I just got a vacuum cleaner," Dubose said with a smile.
Although she has only been in business since the beginning of the spring semester, Dubose has been braiding hair since she was eight.
"One day my older sister was braiding her hair, and I asked her if she would braid mine," Dubose said. Her sister replied that she should do it herself.
And she has ever since.
Dubose first learned to braid by doing it herself -- on her own head.
She offers a wide range of braiding styles from her dorm room located in Governors Residence Hall. Along with the help of her suitemate Kelmah Liverpool, a freshman intended pharmacy major, she recently placed flyers all over North Campus advertising her services.
Dubose refers to Liverpool as a "walking advertisement" for her business.
"I carry her business cards in my wallet," said Liverpool, who takes advantage of every opportunity to recruit potential customers for her friend.
The budding entrepreneur also uses her profile on Facebook, the popular social Web site, to get the word out.
"I think it's good how she is putting herself out there," Liverpool said. "She is supporting herself. She's a very business-minded person."
Business for Dubose has picked up significantly over the past two weeks, with at least two appointments a day. She can't book too many in one day, though, because the braiding process is so time consuming.
"Micro braids take about six hours," Dubose said. She rubs her hands down nightly after a long day of classes and appointments.
Although she dreamed of owning her own hair salon when she was a little girl, Dubose said that she has no intention of getting her cosmetology license or opening her own place, because those who work in a formal salon setting only take home half of their profits.
And while she doesn't work in a professional salon, Dubose is mindful of sanitary concerns. She requests that her clients bring their own hair products and come with their hair shampooed, blow-dried and oiled. They even have to bring their own comb.
The campus flyers list a few services and prices, but each customer is unique, so her charges may vary.
"I don't do cuts," Dubose said, but she does fancy up-do's for those looking for something glamorous for special occasions. "I didn't put that on the flyer because not many people want that."
Crystal Meade, a junior psychology major, saw Dubose's flyer and photos of her work on Facebook and decided to give her braiding skills a try.
"I went to someone off-campus before, and it was inconvenient," Meade said.
As Dubose plaited her hair into two straight-back braids, Meade said that she will definitely be a repeat customer.
It seems like Dubose has the perfect job -- she's her own boss and works out of her dorm room. However, even a dream job can have its drawbacks.
"I've gotten a lot of racist calls lately," Dubose said.
"People call and ask me if I am white," she said. "They say that I sound white on the phone."
"I'm half white," Dubose continued, "but they want a black girl from New York City to braid their hair."
Despite the stereotypes, Dubose's hair braiding talent keeps her busy for the time being. And even with her quickly-filling appointment book, Dubose said she is not having any problems keeping up with her schoolwork. For now, this honor student is not concerned with any other sort of job.
"I will probably get a job during junior year so I can have something to put on a r?(c)sum?(c)," Dubose said.
Photo: Courtesy of SUNY
