Many little kids dream of being a Disney Princess. Tatiana Plowman became one: Queen Elena of Avalor.

“I have a wig that weighs around 10 pounds and my dress doesn’t always fit through doorways,” Plowman says. “But it’s a lot of fun.”

The University of Iowa student from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, works with A Moment of Magic, a nonprofit student organization that brings characters from Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars to entertain underserved and medically vulnerable children.

“A Moment of Magic has been such an eye-opening experience to what else is out there in the world, as well as a chance to really get to make a difference in someone’s life,” Plowman says. “It’s always so nice to see the children’s smiles light up the whole room. They’re just so willing to jump in and give you a hug and ask you creative questions. It’s just been a really rewarding experience to get to know more people and to know that I’m doing something for the city that’s given me so much.”

Along with A Moment of Magic, Plowman has been a part of the Honors program, served as a campus tour guide and admissions panelist, and event director and administrative director of marketing for the Campus Activities Board (CAB).

Plowman will graduate this spring with a BA in communication studies, minors in Spanish and cinema, and a certificate in event management.

Why did you decide to come to the University of Iowa?

I was looking for a school with a strong writing program. I didn’t quite know what major I wanted, but I knew that being a good writer would help me in any field. I was also looking for a school that offered as much outside of the classroom as inside of the classroom.

I also never wanted to feel like a parasite on a college campus. There’s a lot of college towns where they don’t really want us college students in their town. But I felt like Iowa City was very open to having us here and wanting us to be involved in their town.

What has surprised you most about being a student at Iowa?

The fact that there were so many different course offerings and that there were so many different programs and routes to check out. That was a good eye-opening experience, to see many new paths and things I could do.

What’s your most memorable experience or your favorite memory?

I think one of my favorite memories was a conference that I was able to travel to with the University of Iowa event management program. We went to Las Vegas for an entire week to attend the IMEX conference. We networked and met a lot of awesome people. We also got to check out a lot of really good food places and got to see Marshmello in concert, which was fun.

As much as I love learning in the classroom, I really enjoy getting to go off campus, seeing what the world has to offer, and taking my classroom skills to an outside setting. So, I really appreciate getting the chance to network and tour places and find out new ideas of career fields I didn’t know existed.

What’s provided you with the greatest sense of belonging as a student here?

When I first entered the university, it was during COVID, and it was hard at first to meet friends and figure out what was going on. I really relied on a lot of the people who were living on my floor in Hillcrest Residence Hall my first year. We were all able to coordinate schedules to go have lunch outside, like little picnics. We were able to figure out how to socially distance but also still gain that sense of belonging together.

How has your work with the Campus Activities Board helped prepare you for after college?

It has been a great hands-on experience—getting the chance to work with a budget, work with venue booking, and work with event execution to make some great events happen here on our campus. It’s been a great chance to learn some of those little nitty gritty details and skills that I can take forth in a new career.

My junior year I was able to plan a casino night for our campus. Five hundred attendees came to gamble chips and win prizes like an iPad and Nintendo Switch. I got to work with an outside vendor to bring in the proper games. It was really a hands-on event, and it was a great experience.

Did you have a favorite mentor or someone who was important to your education and Iowa experience?

I would love to give shoutouts to Heather Spangler and Tracy Hufford. They are the two professors within the event management certificate program. They have been great supports throughout finding internships and that next step after college. They’ve opened my eyes to so many different experiences through our field trips off campus to network with different individuals and see new places that I didn’t know existed. So, I really appreciate them.

What will you miss the most after graduation?

I’ll miss the accessibility of everything. The accessibility of having my close friends a couple blocks down the road to bother them to go grab food downtown. I’m going to miss Formosa Sushi. I feel like I’m there almost every week. I will also miss the liveliness of Iowa City.

Post-graduation will be kind of hard to adjust to, but when I got here, it was hard to adjust, too, and I clearly figured it out.

I know Iowa City will always be here. I will be at least back for the opening women’s gymnastics home meet—they’re my favorite sport on campus!