O’Neishea Edmonds is a hard worker and a believer in commitment, community and the power of a welcoming smile. As a Lancer, Edmonds has contributed to the vitality of Longwood’s Greek life through her work with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA) and the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC).
Edmonds is a junior accounting major who has lived in Danville, Va. her whole life. Her work as a citizen leader at Longwood University began as a member of F.I.E.R.C.E Hip Hop Dance Team and has continued through her work as a Resident Assistant (RA), a senator for the Student Government Association (SGA), a member of the Accounting Association, Mortar Board and finally as President of both AKA and the NPHC.
Edmonds stated that her grandmother’s positive motivation and encouragement have been a big asset to who she is now.
Having lived with her grandparents from about ninth grade until they passed away, Edmonds stated, “My grandma was just there for me any time I needed anything, and she always just wanted me to go to school and finish school because she couldn’t.”
The lesson impressed upon her by her grandmother was, “You can do anything you set your mind to. Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t.”
When first applying to colleges, Edmonds commented that she had more of an interest in simply going to college and had not found any dream school despite her initial interest in a big school.
As a freshman, Edmonds said that she did not enjoy her time at Longwood until meeting Jordan Bayless, senior, who invited Edmonds to join F.I.E.R.C.E.
Edmonds stated, “They just made me feel so at home ... I just started to get involved from then on, and then I just loved everything about Longwood.” Speaking on what she enjoys about Longwood, she said, “The main thing that I really like is how it’s so small, and everybody is so close knit, and the faculty, and the staff and everybody is just so nice and respectful and here to help us. That’s what really kept me here at Longwood.” Soon to graduate in May 2014, Edmonds hopes to work in public accounting, auditing or tax. “I’m really not limiting myself right now,” she said.
Already with plans after retirement, Edmonds says her final goal is to open a daycare center for teenage parents who attend high school. The daycare center would be targeted towards students who may not be able to afford daycare, and the prices of would be determined by how well the teenage parent is doing in school.
Edmonds said, “I really have a strong passion for children,” later adding, “I have been directly impacted. My first cousin who I grew up with all my life has two children, and she’s 19, and then one of my second cousins also had a child, and I just know that one of them has a lot of help from her family, and so she’s really not hindered in progress, but the other one really doesn’t, and so I know everybody makes mistakes ... I know that it’s not the child’s fault.”
Having worked as president of both AKA and the NPHC, she said, “It’s been very, very rewarding, getting to work with the different organizations and just finding out the way that they do things and how they feel their voice is being portrayed on campus.”
She further stated, “I’ve known since I was in first grade that I wanted to be an AKA ... I honestly would not have come to Longwood if they did not have AKA, so it’s just been an amazing experience for me since I’ve been initiated.”
She said, “I never regretted my decision,” later adding, “Greek life, I just think that it’s an experience that everybody should get in. There is an organization for everybody.”
Through her time as a sister of AKA and as a board member of the NPHC, Edmonds said that she has attended numerous conferences, made networking connections with people around the country and been able to “become acquainted with some amazing individuals.”
Through her work with AKA, she also noted that she has been able to help people during her time as president through donations, community service, assistance with programs and more.
“My heart is with helping people. I love to help people,” Edmonds said.
Further speaking on the NPHC, Edmonds described the entire organization as a family. “We have our individual organizations within the NPHC, but we can come together for anything,” she said.
Edmonds further stated that she believes the NPHC is able to provide a home for multicultural students, and later added that as an organization, “The NPHC is a vital part of Longwood’s community.”
Edmonds noted that one misconception some students have is that NPHC organizations are mutually exclusive to African-Americans. To tackle similar or additional misconceptions, Edmonds said that she hopes to host future fun and educational events on campus.
She hopes to familiarize students with the history, purpose, culture and impact the NPHC has on the campus.
One example of an event occurred this past Wednesday, April 10, where the NPHC hosted a Stroll Competition.
In the competition, Greek organizations in the College Panhellenic Council (CPC) and Inter- Fraternity Council (IFC) competed, while the top three organizations received donations to their philanthropies.
All proceeds from admission at the event are in the process of going to funding school supplies to children in Prince Edward County.
“I really do think Longwood’s campus would be different without the NPHC on it. I really think if people just take the time to sit there and listen to us and understand what we stand for and all the good that we do on Longwood’s community, more people would be there to just be so happy to be in our organization and contribute and just make it even better than what it is now,” Edmonds said.
“Sometimes, we kind of fall under the radar because we’re not as big as other Greek organizations around campus, so sometimes people might not know that we’re here,” she said.
She later added, “I think sometimes even though people know that we’re here, it could be more, but we can only do as much as we can with the small numbers that we have, and in order to put ourselves out there more, we are going to have to recruit more people.”
For now, Edmonds hopes to grow the organizations in the NPHC, make them better and look for ways to further contribute to Longwood University and the town of Farmville.
“We really are just genuinely good people trying to make a difference and trying to just be the best that we can be, and I really think that being in our organizations has helped some people grow and become the person that they are,” Edmonds said, and later added, “I will always be an AKA. I will always be active in AKA."
At Longwood University, the NPHC is a collaborative organization of six on-campus, historically African-American, international Greek lettered sororities and fraternities, according to the Longwood NPHC website.
For more information, go online to www. longwoodnphc.com
