Long Walk Societies February 2025 Newsletter

Trinity College is grateful to Long Walk Society members who have prioritized the College in their philanthropy. Because of your generosity, senior James Maciel ’25 and his peers experience the full breadth of what is available to Trinity students, from exceptional, small classes to leadership opportunities through internships and co-curricular activities, to competitive athletics. Thank you for all you do for Trinity College. We remain grateful.

To join the Long Walk Societies (LWS) or to learn more, visit the LWS website.

Student Profile: James ’25

Major:

Political science with a minor in music

Activities:

I run the 800 on the track team. I have been in the Chapel Singers since my first year and now serve as its president. I have been 2021–22 class senator and 2022–23 class president as part of the Student Government Association (SGA). I play club soccer and ultimate frisbee, and I sing with the Trinity College Accidentals a cappella group and the Trinity College Gospel Choir.

Long-term career goal:

I aspire to either work as a U.S. ambassador or as a U.S. delegate to the U.N. These positions would fulfill my aims of collaborating with citizens from various walks of life on the topics of peace, international security, and education on international developments.

How Trinity is preparing him:

Trinity has helped me become a better leader. Also, critical thinking and public speaking are both areas that I have had a lot of exposure to at Trinity. I have also learned about negotiating. As part of the SGA, I headed the food committee and reached out to Chartwell’s to improve the offerings on campus. The dining hall had limited hours at one point, and athletes, as one example, were missing lunch. Working with the leadership, we were able to get the hours changed so that they now are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. After that, Chartwells came to the SGA to ask us to provide input on the new design of Mather, and I, along with my food committee team, was able to impact the layout.

Other opportunities at Trinity:

I’m a huge soccer fan, and I also love the city of Hartford. These two loves came together for me when I was able to pitch the idea of screening the 2022 World Cup knockout games at Cinestudio to track coach John Michael Mason ’12, M’14. We were successful in receiving the licensing rights from FIFA and opened the screening to the Hartford community, which was really exciting.

Growing up in and around a college campus in New Haven, I understood the feeling of having a higher education institution in proximity. I am extremely grateful to Yale for its sponsorship of middle and high school programs that enriched my education, but that was a partnership forged over many years, so I believe such institutions can be better with outreach to their surrounding communities. That’s why Trinity’s relationship with Hartford is so inspiring and why it meant so much to bring the World Cup to the Hartford community!

What do you know about the scholarship you hold?

I know the scholarship was made possible by a gift from the Dominski family. Matthew Dominski Sr. was a Polish immigrant during World War II. He achieved the model American dream, something I value and what I want college to do for me. I grew up with just my mom and brother, and attending a college like Trinity just wasn’t going to be an option for me without financial aid. The Matthew Dominski Sr. Scholarship has made everything at Trinity possible.