Each year, Bryant University selects one graduating senior to help shape the institution’s future as a full member of its Board of Trustees. Emilia Wojciechowska ’25 has been named the 2025 Recent Alumni Trustee — a distinction that underscores Bryant's longstanding commitment to student success and leadership at the highest level of governance.
“It’s a surreal moment,” says Wojciechowska, an International Business (IB) and Marketing major with a concentration in Global Supply Chain Management and a minor in Spanish. “I came to Bryant knowing no one, nervous about finding my place. But I found it. And to be chosen for something like this is beyond what I ever imagined.”
Each year, a three-year Board of Trustees appointment is reserved for a graduating senior who has demonstrated outstanding service, strategic thinking, and leadership rooted in real experience. Bryant is among a small group of universities that offer students a formal pathway from campus leadership to board-level governance.
“The Recent Alumni Trustee is one of the most distinctive leadership appointments a graduating student can receive,” said D. Ellen Wilson ’79, Chair of Bryant’s Board of Trustees. “We are thrilled to welcome Emilia to the board. She brings not only a deep knowledge of the Bryant community but also a powerful sense of purpose that will help shape the university’s path forward.”
Wojciechowska’s resume reflects the breadth of her experience. A member of the Honors Program, her senior thesis explored how geographic diversification in manufacturing impacts U.S. imports. She studied abroad in Seville, interned at an international manufacturing firm, and completed an International Business practicum with a client in Israel.
On campus, Wojciechowska took on leadership roles with the International Business Association, IDEA (Innovation and Design Experience for All), Omicron Delta Kappa, Phi Sigma Iota, and the club hockey team, where she managed social media. At Commencement, she received two prestigious honors: the Roger W. Babson Award and the Student Senate Leadership Award.
As a senior, Wojciechowska served on the Bryant Senior Advisory Council (BSAC), a cohort of student leaders who provide direct feedback to the university’s cabinet and president. The Recent Alumni Trustee is selected from this group, which represents the pinnacle of student involvement.
Wojciechowska follows a distinguished lineage of Bryant graduates who have held the role, including Alexia Brandao ’24, Jake Williams ’23, and Julia Di Natale ’22.
“Julia has been a mentor to me,” Wojciechowska notes. “She helped me grow into the leader I am now. Seeing how she carried herself made me want to do the same — to speak up, ask questions, and keep Bryant moving forward.”
Wojciechowska’s journey to leadership began long before she arrived at Bryant. Born and raised in Queens, New York, she is a first-generation college student whose parents immigrated from Poland; she didn’t speak English until kindergarten. She credits her older sisters and higher education-focused summer programs with helping her imagine a future that included college. Wojciechowska also discovered her passion for business early on and was drawn to Bryant’s nationally recognized International Business program.
“I like doing things differently,” she says. “No one from my high school had gone to Bryant before. But the IB program stood out to me, and I wanted to forge my own path.”
That mindset led her to take chances — from rooming with a randomly assigned fellow first-year who became a longtime friend to stepping outside her comfort zone by joining clubs and mentoring fellow students.
“I used to be so introverted,” she says. “But once I got here and realized how much I could contribute, I just kept saying yes. Clubs, mentoring, travel, research — all of it helped me grow into someone who’s ready to lead.”
Bryant President Ross Gittell, Ph.D., agrees. “Emilia is a leader whose insight, integrity, and dedication stood out among an exceptional group of peers,” he says. “She brings to the Board of Trustees a valuable perspective shaped by her recent experience as a student and deep understanding of our community. Her voice will help guide Bryant’s future.”
Wojciechowska was recognized during Saturday’s Commencement ceremony, where she presented President Gittell with the 2025 class brick — a symbol of enduring connection and a commitment to Bryant’s legacy — to be placed along Alumni Walk with 161 other bricks representing the previous graduating classes.
Reflecting on the honor and her Bryant journey, she emphasizes the importance of staying grounded in the values that contribute to the strength of the university.
“Bryant has grown so much over the last four years,” she says, referencing its rise in national rankings and the development of the new Business Entrepreneurship Leadership Center. “It’s an exciting time and, as a member of the board, I aim to ensure that we also stay true to Bryant’s core mission and community.”
She recalls wearing a Bryant sweatshirt in a Copenhagen airport and being recognized by a fellow alum — a sign of the strength of the ever-growing Bryant community.
“There are so many reasons why we have 50,000 alums who love coming back,” Wojciechowska says. “And it’s not just about us. It’s my parents, my sisters, everyone who supported me. They’re part of this community, too. Bryant’s strength is in its people, its values, and its commitment to real-world learning. We don’t just sit in classrooms. We experience the world while we learn about it, and we forge connections in and outside of the Bryant network.”
As the 2025 Recent Alumni Trustee, she will continue that work — ensuring that student and recent graduate perspectives shape Bryant’s future for the next generation and beyond.
