These student leaders play an important role in MSM residence life, assisting other students at MSM.
Resident Life Assistants — known more familiarly as RAs — are MSM students who are hired and trained by staff members of MSM’s Residence Life office in Student Affairs, overseen by Director of Residence Life April Jenkins.
RAs are essential to the mission of Residence Life at MSM and help build a warm, welcoming, and supportive environment for all resident students. They have a wide variety of responsibilities that include being a peer leader, programmer, policy enforcer, community builder, and advisor to students who live in Andersen Hall.
Any student at MSM can apply to become an RA at the end of their freshman year.
Get to know this year’s RAs.
Find out where they’re from, what they’re studying, and their favorite off-campus spots.
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Saverio Alfieri (he/him)
Year: First-Year Graduate
Major: Orchestral Conducting
Hometown: Milan, Italy
Fun Fact: I can cook true Italian pasta!
Favorite Off-Campus Location: Roosevelt Island -
Selin Algöz (she/her)
Year: First-Year Graduate
Major: Classical Violin
Home Country: Turkey
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Bryant Park
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Meaghan Almon (she/her)
Year: Senior
Major: Musical Theatre
Hometown: East Greenbush, NY
Fun Fact: My creative outlets outside of theatre are baking/cake decorating and building elaborate sandcastles!
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Tom’s Diner – I have wonderful memories of so many of my family and friends going there with me over the past three years. -
Samara Bowden (she/her)
Year: Second-Year Graduate
Major: Classical Voice
Hometown: Miami, FL
Fun Fact: Back when I was an undergraduate student at Oakwood University, I pursued my love for cooking by running a small business selling takeout plates.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Sitting on the benches at West Harlem Piers, watching the sunset
“My favorite thing I brought with me is a stack of cards from my family and friends, so I can put them on my door and remind myself of all the people that I love.”
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Marcus Cruz-Santiago (he/him)
Year: Junior
Major: Musical Theatre
Hometown: Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico
Fun Fact: I have lived in 28 different places!
Favorite Off-Campus Location: Conservatory Gardens of Central Park -
Kellin Hanas (she/her)
Year: Senior
Major: Jazz Trumpet
Hometown: Wheaton, IL
Fun Fact: I worked at McDonald’s for just a short five days, and I think I deserve a world record for that.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Macy’s on 34th Street
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Kianna Kelly-Futch (she/her)
Year: Senior
Major: Musical Theatre
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Fun Fact: I love cheetah print! I even accessorized my car back home and named it “The Cheetah Mobile.”
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Ritz Bar & Lounge -
Eduardo Gutterres (he/him)
Year: First-Year DMA
Major: Classical Guitar
Hometown: Porto Alegre, Brazil
Fun Fact: I’m addicted to popcorn.
Favorite Off-Campus Location: Riverside Park Soccer Fields
“My record player is my favorite thing I brought with me to school because it fills my room with the nostalgic warmth of vinyl music and helps create a cozy and inviting atmosphere.”
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Ben McLaughlin (he/him)
Year: Senior
Major: Classical Bass Trombone
Hometown: West Wilford, NJ
Fun Fact: I’m a mountain climber, and I love backpacking.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
The Ikea in Brooklyn -
Emilia Pavlovska (she/her)
Year: Junior
Major: Musical Theatre
Hometown: Jelgava, Latvia
Fun Fact: I learned most of my English skills by excessively watching Disney Channel as a kid. It worked!
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Kuro Kuma, especially on a warm morning when it’s not hot out yet and you can enjoy your coffee outside at one of their cute tables. Also, the pastries are divine.
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Ja'hlil Pembleton (he/him)
Year: Junior
Major: Classical Voice
Hometown: Philadelphia, PA
Fun Fact: I can talk like Elmo.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Soho or Brooklyn -
Themba Pieterse (he/him)
Year: Junior
Major: Classical Trumpet
Hometown: Albany, NY
Fun Fact: I love trains and want to speed run ride every subway in NYC in one day!
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
I love Dumbo, Brooklyn. It has great food and a great park where you can see all of lower Manhattan – the pictures are amazing!
“The most meaningful thing I brought with me are two hand-made crochet bunnies that my aunt made for me – she gifted them to me in Korea in 2018, and they have been with me ever since.”
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Lauren Seery (she/her)
Year: Senior
Major: Classical Double Bass
Hometown: Bethpage, NY
Fun Fact: I love to read about psychology and sociology.
Favorite Off-Campus Location: Riverside Park -
Grace Verbic (she/her)
Year: Second-Year Graduate
Major: Classical Voice
Hometown: Dekalb, IL
Fun Fact: I love peanut butter on my grilled cheese, and I have double-jointed elbows.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
Central Park
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Mikkel Vuust (he/him)
Year: Junior
Major: Jazz Drums
Hometown: Aarhus, Denmark
Fun Fact: I used to be a skateboarder.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
DROM in the East Village -
Ying Wang (she/her)
Year: Senior
Major: Classical Voice
Hometown: Shenzhen, China
Fun Fact: I’m a good listener and lover of life stories.
Favorite Off-Campus Location:
The Expat, a place where my friends and I have so much fun and memories together
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Jenny Yi (she/her)
Year: Second-Year Graduate
Major: Classical Composition
Hometown: Marietta, GA
Fun Fact:I can crack my knuckles by simply clenching my fist. -
YoYo Zhou (she/her)
Year: Junior
Major: Musical Theatre
Hometown: Guangzhou, China
