ABOUT DeAndra
University of Texas at El Paso, Graduate Student
MY COLLEGE KICKS ASS BECAUSE…
My university is in my hometown. El Paso has never been that popular of a place to come visit. Now UTEP is in the top 10 for universities, we hold the only championship for the men’s basketball team in the state of Texas from 1966, and the cheerleaders were the national champions in 2011. Home is what you make of it. El Paso has built itself around the pride of UTEP – I wouldn’t want to invest my time anywhere else.
THE COOLEST PLACE TO PARTY ON CAMPUS IS…
The center of campus at our centennial park. Big, beautiful and alive – that’s where you’ll find all the students now.
THE MOST MEMORABLE THING I’VE DONE SINCE FRESHMAN YEAR IS…
I was part of the UTEP National Champion cheer squad back in 2011. It was our first year in Daytona, Florida for NCA Collegiate Championship. Out of 20 universities, UTEP got first place. What an experience it was to come back to El Paso and be the only team to have won a championship in the centennial for the university.
I MAJOR IN…
Organization & corporate communications with a minor in creative writing. I want to open up my own PR Firm. From representing musicians, web/graphic design, events, promo videos, apps – you name, we’ll represent it!
OH YEAH, AND YOU SHOULD PROBABLY KNOW THAT…
I am an absolute bookworm. I always have a book with me wherever I go. I never used to like to read until I started working at a middle school and was assigned to a group of 8th grades at a 3rd grade reading level. It wasn’t an easy thing to see – the kids felt discouraged and embarrassed about reading. I had to put myself in their shoes and show them the benefits of becoming an active reader. I started carrying a book around with me everyday, alternating subjects from self development to pleasure. I saw a change in the students from them starting out with, “Ms. Chaffino, why do you have a book? That’s boring,” to “Ms. Chaffino, what book would you recommend for me?” The students lead by example. They do as they see, not as they’re told. I am now running a bookclub every Thursday for a marketing firm here in El Paso.
AT SCHOOL, I’M INVOLVED IN…
5 year university cheerleader, member of FLPR (Future Leaders in Public Relations).
Why do you want to be Miss COED 2016?
It was not until I started at the University of Texas of El Paso that I have been proud of where I came from and where I am today.
