“We Are UC” highlights the people who thread the fabric of the Utica College community. These profiles are written from the perspective of the subjects themselves.

Story by Chantelle Boateng, photo provided by Hamza Ditta

My name is Hamza Ditta, and I am a senior majoring in psychobiology. I original came from Brooklyn and thought UC was an easy choice for me because, after touring over 30 colleges. When I came here, I saw students sitting outside of the Bistro doing homework, and professors coming out of their offices to have a conversation with them, as well as helping them.

However, when I arrived on the UC campus I was a bit culture shocked because being from the City I had never been to a school that was predominantly caucasian. But after almost four years here, I have seen the level of diversity here on campus which continues to grow.

Since being on the UC campus, I have become involved in multiple organizations that have taught me many life lessons. I am currently the president of the Pre-Health Professional Society, which I joined during my freshman year to learn more about the medical field and the opportunities it provides. I am the senior class vice president and I am the vice president of the Utica College Programming Board, where my job involves coming up with events that can allow students to take a break from their day to relax and enjoy the company of their peers.

I think our campus safety does an amazing job in keeping students, but I saw that were other measures some schools had that we were missing here on our campus. One of my favorite changes has been the addition of more Blue Light systems around campus, which I was part off in making a reality. These safety measures were implemented after my team members and I presented “Do UC See a Safer Campus?” during Leadership Weekend to President Casamento, the provost and other administrative staff. I noticed that they  listened to our concerns because a couple of months later there are new Blue Light systems around the campus, along with security cameras in the parking lots and new blue phones in the academic buildings. This showed me that the school is willing to listen to what students have to say and making those changes to make us feel safer.