Photography and Imaging graduate Katie Buntsma. Photo: Chuck Spangler
“I came to Art Center from a tiny town in Iowa and I thought I was going to be a big deal,” said Photography and Imaging graduate Katie Buntsma last week as she received Art Center’s Student Leadership Award for the Summer 2013 term. “I was certain of it.”
That certainty, Buntsma shared with the audience, didn’t last long.
“I broke my arm the first day of school,” she said with a laugh, recalling the most dramatic example of how reality put her ego in check. “I ran my scooter into a cement pylon and spent my first class in the Huntington Hospital emergency room.”
Photograph by Student Leadership Award winner Katie Buntsma.
Each term, Art Center presents the Student Leadership Award to a deserving student from the College. The award is a distinguished honor granted to a graduating student who exemplifies leadership qualities and accomplishments that stand out above their peers.
During her time at Art Center, Buntsma led campus tours for prospective students and their families, served as an elected member of Art Center Student Government (ACSG), served as co-president of Food Club for two years, volunteered at TEDx Art Center College of Design, participated in numerous Transdisciplinary Studios, and served as an important role model for her peers.
“Katie is known all across campus by students, as well as faculty and staff, as she has been such a strong presence in the student life of Art Center,” said Dean of Students Jeffrey Hoffman when introducing Buntsma to the stage at last weeks’s graduation ceremony. “Her positive and empathic spirit has not only left a legacy of others to emulate, but made a very real difference for students in preparing them for the life that lies ahead after Art Center.”
Photograph by Student Leadership Award winner Katie Buntsma.
“She has a genuine desire to see the College live up to its educational mandate,” said another faculty nominator, who served as both ACSG’s secretary and the Photography and Imaging Department representative. “She has done seriously good work to address the needs of her peers and to help the institution in general.”
“She committed above and beyond what was necessary for her classes,” said another faculty nominator. “She juggled her student government responsibilities and her classwork with ease, and used her comfort with the College community to help us get things done.”
“She has always demonstrated the values we look and hope for in a student, a graduate and an alumni,” added another faculty nominator of Buntsma, who as co-president of Food Club, planned off-campus experiences for students to sample some of the best cuisine in the greater Los Angeles region.
Photograph by Student Leadership Award winner Katie Buntsma.
And, as Buntsma pointed out in her speech last week, the point of Food Club isn’t the food, it’s about the unexpected friendships that can form. “When I first went to Food Club I saw Photo majors talking to Graphic Design majors talking to Transportation Design majors,” said Buntsma. “It was amazing.”
She also shared that during her time at Art Center she learned that being a leader isn’t about taking credit, but rather it’s about working hard at the small things. “It’s about making a small difference here and there,” said Bunstma. “Because, in the end, those are thing that become a big deal. And being a big deal yourself? Well, that’s not really a big deal.”
Students who receive the Student Leadership Award represent the character, the integrity and the skills that Art Center desires for all students to develop during their time at the College. Recipients must have represented student interests by providing outstanding leadership through broad involvement in Art Center campus life.
Additionally, during her time at Art Center, Buntsma twice received the Martha Marsh Chandler Endowed Scholarship.
