Junior psychology major, Kayla Moceri is no stranger to Sonoma State University. Moceri has used her past three years on campus to work in as many roles as she can on campus and works to always have a positive attitude and smile on her face as she is doing it. Whether she’s working as a peer mentor or battling on the volleyball court, Moceri always keeps an optimistic energy.
Moceri moved to Sonoma State her freshman year from Colorado.
“I love Colorado but it never really felt like my home. My dad was working out here and my family was in Colorado. It was hard because my parents are still together but our family was split. It is so rewarding that we are all here now. My sister and my mom moved here in September too. That’s the main reason why I moved here was so that my family could all be back together,” said Moceri.
Her freshman year at Sonoma State, Kayla started her college journey by going through formal Panhellinic recruitment and received a bid from Alpha Gamma Delta. Her time in Alpha Gamma Delta has let Kayla grow, as well as the chapter, with her positive and welcoming personality.
“I have had leadership positions all throughout my time in AGD even as a freshman from Sunshine Chair to Director of Communications which then lead to my position right now as Vice President of Chapter Wellness, which is one of the eleven vice presidents of the chapter. It is really exciting to always be part of the support for the chapter which has taught me a lot and I have gotten to grow with it as well and that was really exciting,” said Moceri.
Through her time here at Sonoma State, Moceri has worn many hats around campus. She has worked as a peer mentor, a peer facilitator, at the Student Center, with Career Services, and as the captain of the club volleyball team.
“I am apart of the Student Relations Team of the Career Center and pretty much we work on the side of getting the word out about the Career Center and hope to make it more integrated with campus, Greek life, sports teams, and different clubs. We approve jobs and talk to employers who help set up career fest and career fairs,” said Moceri
Kayla works with having people table and get students internships and experiences for their future. She also discussed her work with the career closet; this is where the Career Center donates business clothes that are barely worn or brand new and have the tags on them. These clothes are offered to all Sonoma State students and is there to provide for students if they can not financially afford or don’t know what is best to have in an interview.
Moceri also works as a peer facilitator and that is in the First and Second Year Transition (FAST) program. Right now, she is a peer facilitator working with sophomores in the class, SSCI 299: How to Become a Social Scientist.
“As a psych major, it is really nice to teach them how to write research papers and how to read research papers and do projects as well as support them in their second year. I help my students on how to not to get into the sophomore slump as well as how to academically, emotionally, and physically get more developed for their junior year” said Moceri.
Kayla’s third on campus job is working as a psychology research assistant through the Psychology Department. She does research for the class that she coincidentally is a Peer Facilitator for. The class is funded by a grant instead of the school. The data collected, coded, and interpreted by Kayla is the data that will prove that the grant money is put to good use.
Moceri has also recently joined the Sonoma State Club Volleyball Team. She is now the captain of the “twos”.
“There are two teams within the club team, there are ones and twos and I am on the twos. We just started in October and right now it is preseason so we have not had any games yet but we are practicing and staying in shape and warming up and getting to know each other. That has been a really great experience for me. Getting back into a team dynamic is a part of my life that I have not been in four years now. I played in middle school, high school, and my family owned a volleyball club back home. Volleyball is like my whole family’s life. It’s nice to get back in touch with it,” said Moceri.
It is no surprise that with so many roles on campus Kayla would be recognized for her outstanding leadership on Sonoma State’s campus. Last month, Kayla was informed that she will officially be named one of the Faces of SSU 2020.
“It is a really great honor to get recognized by both your peers and staff. I got nominated by my staff coordinator Emily Murray from the FAST program and by my bosses at the Career Center, Kelsey and Becky,” said Moceri. “It felt really rewarding. We will be on those banners around campus and we will be attending Seawolf Day, when the incoming freshman come to visit the school for the first time as well as some other events. Our job is to explain everything we do and why we love being a Seawolf and how to get involved.”
Kayla’s time here at Sonoma State University has really shown how great it can be to get involved and work with the university.
“I love it out here more than Colorado. I thrive out here and I think I really just found myself out here” said Moceri.
