FSU Trailblazer: Mia Hartley

By Vivian El-Salawy on September 26, 2016

Mia Hartley is a dedicated and hardworking undergraduate student at THE Florida State University.  She effortlessly inspires, motivates, and encourages those around her, and – oh, did I mentioned that she is the assistant drum major for the World-Renowned Florida State University Marching Chiefs?  She uniquely combines music with medicine in the pursuit of her greatest accomplishments.  Mia was able to sit down with Uloop for an interview to give our readers the chance to get to know this inspirational young woman.  Without further ado, meet this week’s FSU Trailblazer: Mia Hartley.

Mia Hartley marching in Doak Campbell Stadium as FSU beat Charleston Southern. Photo taken by Melina’s Photography.

Q: What is your hometown?

MH: St. Pete Beach, Florida

Q: What’s your major?

MH: Music Therapy and Pre-Nursing

Q: What year of school are you in?

MH: I am a fifth year undergraduate student.

Q: Why did you pick your major?

MH: I knew that I was interested in continuing to have music incorporated into my life, but the medical field was also a calling that I wanted to pursue.  Having said that, the fusion of music therapy and nursing seemed to be a great combination, especially because they both seem to have the same holistic philosophy to medicine and healthcare.

Q: What is your favorite thing about FSU?

MH: I think it is the pride that we take in the traditions that we have, especially regarding the Seminole tribe.  We are very culturally sensitive and aware and I feel honored to be able to represent the Seminole tribe, particularly with the Marching Chiefs.  It’s that honor and pride that we are able to carry through the academic community that I cherish about Florida State.

Q: What do you like to do in your spare time?

MH: I am really interested in American Sign Language, so I spend a lot of time learning about the culture and keeping up with what is happening in the culture (particularly through my tutor).  I love getting together with people within the deaf community.  I also enjoy just being outside and being in nature. I find a lot of peace even from a walk through a playground. It’s very meditative and it allows for me to be able to come back to myself.  I also really love to exercise.

Image via Virginia Heights Elementary School

Q: How would you describe yourself?

MH: Something I really value as a person and in other people is transparency and just being genuine.  That is something I personally really focus on a lot, especially in my friendships and relationships.  I would describe myself as someone who cares to be genuine and fully myself all the time, even if it brings a little embarrassment.

Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

MH: I would love to be a nurse practitioner in the next ten years. I have a large interest in advocacy for those with disabilities in the arts. I would love to either create an organization or contribute to an pre-existing arts organization by creating programs for those with disabilities to be able to express themselves fully through the arts.  This is  something our culture is becoming more aware of and I would love to be an ambassador for this issue within society. I strive to continue moving that cultural awareness.

Q: What steps are you taking as an undergraduate student in order to prepare yourself for that future?

MH: I’m going out of my way to expose myself to perspectives that I do not understand or that are not my own. I also love volunteering within the community. I’ve volunteered with the Alzheimer’s project and a couple of other organizations within Tallahassee, and what I’ve enjoyed the most is that I’ve been exposed to people that are leading lives that are much unlike my own. I believe that these experiences are preparing me very well in becoming a nurse practitioner because I’m going to have a lot of patients who lead very different lives from my own and I will need to be able to empathize with them as much as possible.

Q: What do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment during your time at FSU?

MH: I consider my greatest accomplishment at FSU to be uncovering my passion for serving others, whether it be through music or through the medical field.  What I’ve realized at the root of everything I want to pursue in life is the fact that I want to do it to better myself as a person and consequently, benefit the lives of others.  My experiences as a music therapy practicum student, an undergraduate research student, and as the leader of the Marching Chiefs have all been experiences that I have used to better understand how I can make a positive impact on people’s lives.

Mia doing the chop during pregame. Photo taken by Zach Goldstein.

Q: Accomplishments typically come with both challenges and rewards.  What has been the most rewarding aspect of your accomplishment?

MH: The most rewarding aspect of accomplishment has been learning to see the significance of the failures that often lead to that accomplishment.  I have learned to embrace the journey to success, and it makes overcoming setbacks much less daunting.  Embrace the process, that’s my motto that I remind myself of everyday!

Q: Have you met anybody at FSU that has greatly influenced or inspired you?

MH: Professor Meighan. He retired after over forty years of teaching at the College of Music, but the way he approaches music is still so curious and open-minded that you would think he is just started in terms of how he approaches it.  He’s a magnificent musician and he focuses not only on how to be a better musician, but how you can be a better person and lead a better life in a simplistic way.  I’ve looked up to him more than I’ve looked up to anyone in my musical career.  His guidance has been the most influential as far as my growth as musician, but more importantly as a person. He emphasizes how failure is part of the growth process and how there is nothing wrong with making mistakes.

Q: What challenges have you faced and what motivated you to overcome them?

MH: A large challenge that I faced throughout my undergraduate experience was excessive worrying.  My saxophone professor whom I mentioned earlier had a great saying: “Fear is an acronym for ‘false expectations appearing real’.  With his guidance and the wonderful support system of friends and colleagues that I surround myself with at FSU, I’ve learned how to remove excessive worrying from my psyche and channel that energy into moving closer to the goal at hand.

Q: If you could go back and change something in your time at FSU, would you? If so, what would you change?

MH: Yes.  Most people say no, but I am going to say yes because I spent a lot of time buried in my studies and in my books and I’m glad I have come to realize that with a semester left. I’m really taking the time to slow down and embrace every moment, especially with Marching Chiefs and my friends.  I am trying to embrace every moment I can because it goes by so fast.

Q: If you could give an incoming freshman any piece of advice about college life, what would it be?

MH: Know that in college, you’re going to experience everything. You’re going to experience success, rejection, failure, confusion, and so on and so forth.  But it’s important to embrace every single one of those experiences because they’re going to make you into who you are going to become and if you look at it through that lens, you’re only going to continue to flourish as a person. Embrace the opportunity. Always learn something new even if you’re set with setbacks.

Q: Is there anything you would like to add that I might not have thought to ask you?

MH:  That seems to have been everything!

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