Genevieve Joers shares her wisdom about the sophomore slump and the Cafe East Fro-yo.

Name, School, Major, Hometown:
Genevieve Joers, CC, Psychology, Seattle

Claim to fame:
Playing Elle in Legally Blonde and Chelsea in V124 aka “Please, Get Those Actors Out Of This Play”, several Latenite shows as a middle schooler with a hidden agenda and one as a patriotic nurse, was probably your NSOP OL, definitely invited you to a Nonseq concert.

Where are you going?
Back to NYC to give ‘em the ol’ razzle dazzle.

What are 3 things you learned at Columbia and would like to share with the Class of 2024?

  1. CLUBS ARE THE LIFEBLOOD OF THIS CAMPUS! JOIN SEVERAL! Columbia is not so much one big community as it is a bunch of little intersecting ones, so joining one club will introduce you to some cool people who will encourage you to join another club which will introduce you to more cool people and before you know it you’ll be begging people on the Lerner ramps to buy terrible baked goods to support a group you didn’t know existed a month ago and your heart will overflow and those spilled heart juices will swim up to your brain and wash away all of the stress that The Core Curriculum™ has inflicted upon you.
  2. If you’re intimidated by someone, odds are you actually just admire them. Don’t be shy—tell them you look up to them and ask them for their secrets! The incredible thing about going to a small/mid-sized school like Columbia is that the people who you admire can easily become your mentors with a little work on your end. If it’s a professor, attend to their office hours. If it’s an upperclassman or an alum, ask if they’ll go to coffee with you. If it’s someone at your internship, ask your supervisor if there’s a way to set up a quick chat with them. I guarantee that most people will be more than happy to share their words of wisdom with you if you show a genuine interest in them and just ask.
  3. The Sophomore Slump is devastatingly real. Sophomore year will probably be somewhere between Somewhat Turbulent and Very Bad Yikes and you will THINK that you are the only sad lil’ sophomore but LET ME! TELL YOU! You are ALL CONFUSED AND SAD!! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU! Talk to each other about it!! I do not know what it is about sophomore year but everyone just becomes the mayor of bummer town and doesn’t understand why and it’s so much better if you know you’re not going through those growing pains alone. Also, junior and senior year will simply rock.

“Back in my day…”
JJ’s had Jamba Juice, Diana sandwiches were perfect, the inflatable rat haunted campus, and I could watch Bacchanal from the comfort of my John Jay single.

Favorite Columbia controversy?
Perhaps not a controversy, but I truly live for the aca-drama. It’s preposterous. I love it.

What was your favorite class at Columbia?
Favorite lectures:

  • Developmental Psychology with Nim Tottenham
  • Abnormal Behavior with E’mett McCaskill
  • Topics in American Cinema: Comedy with Rob King
  • Shakespeare II with James Shapiro

Favorite theater classes:

  • Acting the Musical Scene with Mana Allen and Barbara Anselmi
  • Scene Lab: Laban with Tina Mitchell
  • Acting Improv with Kyle deCamp

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese?

What kind of a question is this?? Have you TRIED the pesto gouda from Westside??? My life will never be the same!!

Whom would you like to thank?
My parents x a million (for everything), my brother (came to all my shows) and sister (infinitely cooler than me), Ethan, Kayla, Ilana, everyone in Nonsequitur, CMTS, Latenite, The Varsity Show, the one delightful Starbucks barista who knew how to spell my name, and Crabby Abby (may she live on in our hearts forever, snip snip snip).

One thing to do before graduating:
Audition for Latenite. If that’s not for you, go see Latenite. It’s free. And you will inevitably audition for Latenite the following semester.

Any regrets?
I did not discover Cafe East fro-yo early enough. Years of missed yo’s. Devastating.