It is not uncommon for students to walk into the wrong classroom.
It is uncommon for students to stay in that classroom. Evan Chen, however, is not like other students.
When the now vice president of the Student Association was heading to his classes early in his undergraduate career, he sometimes wandered into club meetings. Even if that wasn’t where he was supposed to be, he’d stay.
Chen, now an active member of more than 20 SA clubs, was elected vice president of SA in May, along with President James Ingram and Treasurer Sade Cadle. The senior business major’s list of extracurricular activities is long – he’s a member of Chinese Student Association, Asian-American Student Union, UB Glee, Jam Club, UB Breakdancing and ENACTUS, a club through the School of Management.
For Chen, getting involved in an extensive amount of clubs at UB was an accident waiting to happen. He was already an active member in nearly 10 clubs after his freshman year.
“I always got lost and by chance I would run into [club] meetings,” he said. “Whenever I walked by a club meeting, I would stop and just walk in.”
Chen’s position as vice president requires he mainly manage and deal with clubs.
To be so involved requires hard work, passion and dedication – all qualities Chen learned working in his family-owned restaurant and salon and through club organizations in high school.
Chen’s sister, Christine Chen, a senior finance major at UB, believes working in the restaurant and salon as a kid helped her brother, herself and their older sister gain skills in the business field.
“Having [the businesses] while we grew up helped us learn responsibility, time management and the business aspects of life at a younger age,” Christine said. “We’re all very independent and we don’t like to ask for help unless we really need to.”
But the Chens love to help others.
The Orange County, New York native started volunteering in sixth grade as a tutor for students in elementary school, and he hasn’t stopped trying to get involved in various types of organizations.
In high school, Chen was president of the recycling club and the Rotary club and was an active member in the Academy of Finance where he was able to bring the Harlem Globe Trotters to his school as a way to raise money for the club.
When Jason Elliott, a staff assistant for Campus Living, met Chen two semesters ago, he knew from the beginning that Chen was passionate about the community.
“He definitely is a great example of what UB pride looks like,” Elliott said. “He is always willing to help out, has great input on programing and is full of new ideas.”
Before Chen knew it, he was active in 19 clubs, even holding positions in some of them.
His desire to get involved in as many clubs as he could started in a calculus class his sophomore year, when he became study partners with Jason Lee, a senior marketing/management major and the Chinese Student Association (CSA) public relations representative at the time.
“He was taking 21 credits, working two jobs and public relations rep. for CSA – he was so busy,” Chen said. “One day, as he was talking to me about resigning his CSA position with the president of the club and I said, ‘Hey, I can try that.’”
CSA conducted a trial period with Chen as its new public relations representative to see if he was suitable for the job. Chen managed to secure the position after only a week.
Although Chen was heavily involved in cultural clubs, he explored his artistic side through UB Glee, Jam Club and UB Breakdance.
“With breakdancing, I thought, ‘Oh, these guys are doing something cool,’ but instead it’s like an art form and they get to express their feelings through physical attributes in their performance,” Chen said.
Although Chen no longer dances with UB Breakdance, he still advocates for the club because the emotions portrayed in breakdancing fascinated him.
Justin Ceniza, a junior occupational therapy major, met Chen his freshman year through UB Breakdance.
“My first impression of him was that he was driven, not in learning how to dance but he gave off a vibe that he was striving for success in other things,” Ceniza said. “In a club setting, he has really been helping UB Breakdance get more publicity and getting us more known. I appreciate his invitations to perform, especially at opening weekend.”
Chen’s hardworking mentality and passion for the UB community is why Ingram asked him to run on the presidential ticket.
During his short time as vice president so far, Chen said he has taken a hands-on approach with the clubs, proving to Ingram and other members of SA how invested he is in the student body. Chen has volunteered to work concession stands with clubs during athletic games and promoted new club activities to attract more students.
Ingram said Chen’s creative element is extremely beneficial to SA and part of the reason why he and Ingram work well together. Chen’s natural innovative tendencies bring a new component to SA, which has been noticed by his colleagues.
“I think it works well because I’m able to give Evan some insight on certain things that he might still be learning and go from there,” Ingram said. “He is one of the most interesting people that I have met here at UB. He never fails to surprise me with the different things he knows or is good at.”
Christine worries that sometimes her younger brother will take on too much and be unable to handle all of his responsibilities.
“He likes to take on challenges and prove that he can do it,” she said. In his mind, he’s trying to be the best that he can be, but sometimes, it’s the wrong time for him to take on so many things.”
Christine does believe one of her brother’s greatest strengths is time management.
His ability to schedule his time has enabled him to also assist the University Police.
Chen goes on ride-a-longs and has plans to join the police council. One of his goals is to improve campus safety by replacing the current lighting on the track with LED lights.
Although Chen’s focus is on the betterment of UB, he also wants to continue giving to his hometown community.
“After I graduate, I want to help my parents out with their businesses or go into the pharmacy area,” Chen said. “I want to own a chain of pharmacies and put a new image out there that’s more interactive with the communities rather than business-wise.”
He also dreams of becoming the superintendent of his high school with hopes to continue the active role his high school has in the community.
But for now, Chen can be seen around campus directing UB clubs, informing them of new SA procedures such as digitalizing club forms and changes in fundraising requirements. His list of ideas to fix current problems is extensive but Chen believes he can get it all done and evoke change.
And his new role as vice president has him stumbling into even more club meetings.
email: news@ubspectrum.com
