Jeremy Chester, continued
Jeremy has liked all of his professors and his favorites so far have been chemistry lecturer Anthony LoTempio and Biology Professors Karl Wilson and Anna Tan Wilson, about whom he said, "They have very different teaching styles, but I learned so much from both of them. They were very receptive to answering questions and giving help outside class."
Jeremy plans to go to medical school because he has enjoyed his science classes so much. "I was most interested into the biochemistry of organisms and how they related to physiology of mammals and found it interesting," he said. "The more classes I took related to medicine, the more interesting I found it. I also have a lot of doctors in my family and they told me about how it was a hard but rewarding life."
Jeremy says his most significant experience came from helping start Alpha Sigma Phi, a new fraternity on campus. "I got to know the guys and we realized we all had a common vision for what we wanted a fraternity to be." He and his friends agreed on a fraternity that broke away from the negative stereotypes:
They accepted pledges into Alpha Sigma Phi based solely on the character of the individual. With Jeremy as the first pledge director, the fraternity developed a pledge process free of hazing or other negative behaviors. Finally, the fraternity was determined to debunk the notion of "frat boys," or as Jeremy put it, "you absolutely had to be a gentleman to get in."
He believes Alpha Sigma Phi had an immediate impact on campus. "It quickly became one of the most popular fraternities at BU and today has almost sixty members," he remarked. He also thinks that the example set by Alpha Sigma Phi has encouraged other Greek organizations to share in its vision of what a fraternity should be on campus.
Harpur College, to Jeremy, has been a rewarding mix of academic challenges and strong friendships outside the classroom. "I pretty much liked every class I ever took and I've liked every professor I've ever had. I thought it was a great education and I like how the school has so many extra activities. There's a lot to do on the campus. I've seen the school come a long way in the last four years. They're always trying to make the things better for the students."
Editor's note: Shortly after the Spring semester ended, the Marine Corps called Jeremy Chester to serve in Iraq. He is currently training at Camp Pendleton, CA, until his deployment in August. He is one semester shy of graduating and looks forward to returning to school. He'll be in Iraq 6 or 7 months and will return to Binghamton to finish his degree next year.