Senior Spotlight: Zoey Pangburn
This story was edited April 22 at 11:11 p.m.
By Teagan Rotella
When Zoey Pangburn first stepped foot onto Rider’s campus, she wasn’t herself. Literally. Being an identical twin sister can sometimes mean switching places when the other gets sick, which was exactly what Pangburn did for her twin, Micki.
What Pangburn did not expect was to walk out of the campus tour and consider Rider for herself.
“I’m listening to the people talk about Rider, and I’m like, wait, this actually sounds really good,” Pangburn said.
Pangburn, a senior political science major, and her twin sister both eventually committed to Rider. Since then, Pangburn has been a part of a few organizations on campus, such as Rider’s Model United Nations team.
“I’ve learned so much about public speaking, representing ideas I don’t necessarily agree with and coming up with arguments for things I hadn’t considered before,” Pangburn said.
From April 6 to April 10, Rider’s MUN team was in New York for the National Model United Nations Conference and received the Outstanding Delegation Award.
“Once you’re [in the sessions], you’re running around non-stop. You’re trying to control the room and also be as diplomatic as possible,” Pangburn said. “It’s a lot of fun.”
Pangburn is also the assistant captain of Rider’s mock trial team.
Since being involved in Rider’s mock trial team, Pangburn is better at thinking on her feet and understanding the Federal Rules of Evidence.
“I can’t say that there’s any other organization on campus that is as helpful for somebody who’s going into law as mock trial is,” Pangburn said.
For her future career, Pangburn plans on becoming an estate lawyer. She will attend Temple Law School in the fall, where she received the Beasley full-tuition scholarship. Last summer, she worked at Lex Nova Law Firm in South Jersey and is looking forward to working there again this summer.
“I essentially manage their estate planning, and I’ve been a witness to a couple of signed documents,” Pangburn said. “It’s pretty fun and I’m excited to go back.”
Before attending Rider, Pangburn’s academic journey was a unique one.
She attended a technical vocational high school that offered a program where she was able to test out of high school her sophomore year. Then, she started attending Camden County College for her junior and senior year of high school, receiving both her high school diploma and associate degree. After graduating, she transferred to Rider to complete her bachelor’s degree.
Because of her unique academic experience, Pangburn is nervous about the fact that law school is a three-year program.
“When I look back, what I’ve done is two years at Rider, two years at Camden County, and two years of high school,” Pangburn said.
Despite the fact that this experience will be new for her, Pangburn is glad that she will be familiar with her college by the time she leaves.
Megan Rothstein, a junior actuarial science major, met Pangburn for the first time on move-in day.
After an event hosted on the Campus Green, Rothstein, her mom and her roommate at that time filled up a tote bag with sodas from the event to bring back to their dorm room.
“As we’re walking back to Longstreet, I hear someone behind us say, ‘I’m thirsty.’ So, I turn around with this bag full of sodas, and I say, ‘Here, you want one?’ And that’s how [Pangburn and I] first met,” Rothstein said.
They found out their dorms were on the same floor in Longstreet House, and hung out together for the rest of the day.
“So now, of course, this year, we’re roommates, and I like to think we’re inseparable,” Pangburn said.
Reflecting on what has changed since attending Rider, Pangburn believes she has become more optimistic and resilient. She is most proud of the strong friendships she has made, as she believes they will continue past college.
When asked what advice she would give to incoming freshmen, Pangburn said, “Don’t be scared to get involved. Find people who have similar interests to you and just throw yourself into the deep end there.”
