This article is the third in a week-long series of profiles of various student leaders on campus.
Elayne Heisler does not just act as a basketball ticket dispenser or a receptacle for parking complaints. Sure, she does that too, but as the new president of the Graduate and Professional School Council, Heisler wants to make GPSC a more social and unifying group on campus.
"There's a real dichotomy in GPSC. We are who you complain to and who you go to for basketball tickets," Heisler said. "My vision of GPSC is a much more encompassing force for students. We want to broaden our role to be a place you would hang out."
So Heisler started planning socials and community service events for graduate and professional school students over the summer, something she plans to continue throughout the year.
"Her primary motivation for GPSC simply comes out of a desire to have a productive graduate student experience at Duke," GPSC Ombudsperson Will Tyson said. "We see a lot of graduate students getting so involved in their research that they do not do much else. Elayne has not fallen into that trap--her involvement with GPSC keeps her busy and a part of the community. We would like to create an environment in which more students are part of campus life."
As for Heisler, a third-year graduate student in sociology, her involvement in both the University and the Durham communities runs deep.
In addition to teaching Hebrew school and training for a half-marathon, Heisler spends what she predicts will be over 10 hours a week working for GPSC, to say nothing of her graduate work.
"Elayne is developing as a leader. Over the summer she did a lot of work and really took stock of what her role is," Tyson said. "She has a large vision for what GPSC can do, and she has the proper focus going into the school year."
Both Tyson and Heisler are quick to point out that GPSC is more than two people. They credit their executive board with much of the group's progress.
"Our executive board is amazing," Heisler said. "It's not just me. I'm the one giving the speeches, but there are others doing the work, too. I have a bunch of amazing people behind me."
Hailing from New Milfork, New York, Heisler received her undergraduate degree from Cornell. The summer before her freshman year, Heisler worked at a nursing home, an experience that shaped the scope of her graduate research, which focuses on aging and health.
"It was a really random summer job, but it ended up being phenomenal," said Heisler, who continued volunteering at nursing homes during graduate school.
Always a "history person," Heisler's specific interest in aging and health lies in demography, which she predicts will eventually lead her to a more applied or policy-oriented career within the subject.
In addition to her personal goals, Heisler wants to improve the quality of life for graduate and professional students. "I'm very outgoing and bubbly and I have a lot of energy. It helps for GPSC that I don't need as much sleep as other people, and I am very organized," Heisler said. "In graduate school, you juggle a lot of balls and GPSC is a giant ball."
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