Fayyaz Vellani’s interest in higher education started when he was a freshman majoring in environmental studies at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. “My resident assistant was so nice, so welcoming. I was completely inspired by his work with college students.” As he headed into his senior year, he decided to be an RA, too. “I really enjoyed counseling other students,” he remembers. After graduating, Fayyaz decided to pursue his new found love of counseling and get a masters degree in student personnel administration.
His decision to leave Canada was easy — there were no higher education administration programs in country. But why New York City and why Steinhardt? “As a singer and songwriter (I play guitar and keyboard), I’ve always wanted to live in New York City and I did a lot of performing there.” Fayyaz sang at Earth Day in Battery Park City and at the Sidewalk Cafe in the East Village. “I had always wanted to attend NYU since I first visited New York as a teenager and saw the Washington Square campus,” he notes.
Ismailimail 