Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathy Li.
Hi Kathy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Okay, there is so much I want to talk about here so let me start at the end of high school. I’m from East Brunswick, New Jersey, and near the end of my junior year of high school, I started the process of looking into colleges and figuring out the next step in my academic future. I had my mindset on being an education major as I wanted to be a teacher. During my senior year, I even got to be a part of this pre-school teaching program we had called “Bears and Cubs” which was super fun. At the time, I was mostly looking into attending The College of New Jersey or Rutgers as they were both in-state schools with great education programs. Later that same year, my club volleyball team won a bid to nationals in Orlando, Florida, around June. We had gotten approval to go from the club volleyball leader and our coaches.
When June finally rolled around, we were at the tournament and after the second day of playing, we got to go home early because we finished in our bracket sooner than we had planned. My mom said there was a campus nearby called the University of Central Florida (UCF). So she said that we should check it out. I agreed to say, “as long as we get to go to Disney afterward.” Before this moment, I had never heard of UCF or even thought of it as an option for me. After I took a tour of campus, I fell in love with it and decided to look at a few more of the brochures and papers that were handed to me during the tour. I saw hospitality and automatically found that I would have more opportunity with that than with education.
I visited the Rosen College Campus and instantly felt a connection to it. Ever since I haven’t really doubted or regretted my decision. It has also really improved my skin as I grew up and still have eczema. After all that, I became a Disney annual pass holder my freshman year of college and then went to the parks a lot with friends. It became a weekly thing we called Disney Friday Fun Days! I liked posting Disney content and all of a sudden I realized I had become an influencer or content creator. Disney is a part of me now. I love the theme parks so much and exploring Orlando has just been such an adventure. Ever since coming to UCF and Orlando in general, I have been able to be healthier, more involved, and find more friends. Sure there are ups and downs but I know with my family’s and true friend’s support, it’ll all be okay.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Well, the pandemic has been a huge obstacle to my mental health but even before that, I struggled with an eating disorder and body dysmorphia. The word beautiful never seemed to fit me or at least I couldn’t see it fitting my look. I wouldn’t eat for long periods of time or go as long as I could by eating the most minimal thing. Sometimes I would wake up in the middle of the night from pain and I would convince myself that that was just temporary and that my pain was showing how the weight loss was working. After therapy and support from my friends and family, I’ve been able to recover but I don’t think you ever fully recover something like this. I have relapsed a couple of times but I am proud to say I have gone almost a full year with eating three meals a day. It might seem like a small accomplishment to some people, but for me, I am so proud of myself.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My friends and family like to come to me with questions about UCF and Disney. I have become the person of information for those subjects since I love them all and have held numerous positions with UCF First-Year Experience and the Admissions Department. I am currently a tour guide for UCF and I am so excited to be returning to in-person tours in July.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I see myself working in a hotel or some front desk position being able to engage with guests and provide amazing guest service. I also see myself meeting lots more people and creating even more friendships than I have now. I really want to work for Disney or an Orlando theme park one day and gain more experience in the operations side of it all. Fingers crossed.
Contact Info:
- Website: linktr.ee/Kathyxli
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathyxli/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7MuR_xrltwi_zhdW7PWJ9A
