MEET OUR STUDENTS: Anthony Vega: All-Star Reporter

A communication major, Vega said he is drawn to the entertainment side of the news industry. His ambition is to become a newscaster, a TV talk show host, or, even better, a reporter interviewing celebrities on the red carpet.

“As a kid, I would approach my brother and shoot him with questions,” said Vega, “or I would corner my mother and ask her in Spanish, ‘How was your day? What did you do at work?’ Annoyed, she would shoo me away, muttering, ‘You ask too many questions.’” However, Vega’s love of the camera and an audience accelerated at the Law and Government Academy at Hartford public high school.

He turned to theater in his sophomore year of high school and was cast in a play called “Break Dancing Shakespeare.” He would go on to take the lead in every school play thereafter. He became a member of the debate team, a member of student government, and joined the swim team and soccer team. In his senior year, he was named valedictorian.

Outlets for his interests continued at RIC, where he is a member of the Theatre Club and performs with RIC’s Mainstage Theatre. Though Vega is enamored with the stage, he admits to having the occasional pre-performance jitters. He said, “Because I have a Spanish accent, I start to doubt myself, and I worry that I won’t be understood.” But with a dose of self-talk to assuage his fears, he eventually takes the spotlight like a seasoned Jay Leno, filled with energy and enthusiasm. 

He also participates in Student Community Government, Inc. and was made hall counsel member for his residential suite as well as student peer counselor.

An honors student, Vega is the recipient of a $5,900 communication award by the Michael Gonsalves Scholarship Committee for academic excellence and for demonstrating a strong commitment to community service. He also received a $400 merit-based scholarship by the RIC Alumni Association. 

He said, “What I enjoy most about RIC is the personal relationships with the faculty. I think the faculty here look beyond you as a student, and get to know you as a person. In a course I took in digital media writing with Professor Anthony Galvez, I would email him questions about an assignment, and no matter what time it was, he would always reply to my questions within five minutes or less. And whenever I had a question about the ‘real world,’ of work in the communication field, he would always have the greatest advice.”

“I’m far from my home in Connecticut. I’m the first in my immediate family to go to college. But I don’t feel alone at RIC. I feel like everyone supports everyone here. That’s what I love about RIC.”