Villareal attends Inauguration with students from Quinnipiac

Johnston resident Nisa Villareal was one of 38 students from Quinnipiac University who last Friday witnessed history at the Inauguration of Donald J. Trump as the 45th President of the United States.    

Quinnipiac professors Scott McLean, Jennifer Sacco and Kathy Cooke, Villareal and her fellow students were in Washington, D.C. from Jan. 8-21, where they participated in a two-week seminar entitled “Inaugurating the President.”    

“The students got a behind-the-scenes perspective on Washington politics and media through site visits to embassies, executive branch offices, congressional offices and media organizations,” said John W. Petit, assistant director of public relations at QU. “Our students also took in non-profit think tanks and trade associations.”

McLean has been taking the Hamden, Conn.-based school’s students to such seminars every four years since 2001.

While they were in the nation’s capital, the students also took a bus tour of Washington and went to special events held in conjunction with the presidential inauguration, including a reception at the National Press Club and the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminar programs. The goal of the program “was elevating political discourse” and helps students frame what to expect from the incoming Trump administration.

A 2013 graduation of Johnston High School, Villareal is a senior at Quinnipiac and will graduate this spring. She has majored in political science with a minor in criminal justice.

The daughter of Lisa Villareal and the late Edward Villareal, Nisa has served as a Resident Assistant for Sophomore Living and is chief marketing officer for Kappa Alpha Theta/Eta Xi and is also a member of Pi Sigma Alpha, a political science honor society. She’s also vice president of the Order of Omega Greek Honor Society and was an intern in the Rhode Island office of U.S. Congressman James Langevin last summer.

Villareal was “as close as we possibly could have been when President Trump took his Oath of Office. It was exciting…definitely an experience we’ll never forget.” Villareal said the trip was a lot of fun and very informative. “I was afforded the opportunity to not only witness history but to explore policy perspectives from prominent actors in the field of politics and journalism and visit various historical sites.”