When I met Pennsylvania Gamma Lillian “Lil” Corman, she was a senior enjoying the final weeks of college. As I share this story with you all, she is now an alumna who recently made the traditional graduation walk down Old West at Dickinson College.
Oh how quickly these four years have passed for Lil! Her on-campus involvement as a resident advisor, on Panhellenic Council, as a first year mentor and many other areas made her collegiate years so special. With such strong, positive experiences Lil had a goal: “I dedicated time to be part of the first year experience at Dickinson and help others find their place at Dickinson,” she said.
Lil did this as a leader in Pi Beta Phi. She tells stories of reaching out to women in the chapter and not hesitating to “chase them down” or reach out to just check in on them. Even though she won’t physically be on campus in the future, she knows she will play a big part of their experiences at Dickinson. “I understand how important the role model/mentor aspect is of Pi Phi,” she said. It was through her membership in Pi Beta Phi that she was quickly able to find a strong network of women and a mentor herself.
One of her greatest mentoring experiences was with Pennsylvania Gamma Karen Neely Faryniak. Karen has worked at Dickinson College since she graduated. Karen is a member of the President’s Leadership Team and serves as the Chief of Staff and Secretary of the College; she herself served as Chapter President. Karen serves on the chapter’s Alumnae Advisory Committee and attends chapter events, like coming out to visit me!
Lil recalls walking across the quad late at night and seeing a light in Karen’s office. Lil popped her head in and reminded Karen, in a loving sisterly way, to go home, But Lil knows how much Karen works and it is greatly appreciated by the campus community. Lil feels that it is a mutual respect for each other, “I respect her as much as she respects me,” she explains. To see someone who also went to Dickinson and still really cares about Pi Phi is amazing for Lil and many other members of the chapter.
It seems that Lil, too, has made a strong impact on her campus. There are two things I know to be true: both women love Dickinson College and love Pi Beta Phi.