ASU grad launched sustainability initiative for Greek life
Steven Coonce discovered his interest in supply-chain management in a very hands-on way, working 80 hours a week loading trucks and auditing inventory for UPS and Toys “R” Us. He realized he wanted to impact the processes that make a business run, so he decided to go to college and chose ASU.
Originally from Murrieta, California, Coonce majored in supply-chain management and minored in sustainability and graduated from ASU in December 2019. While at ASU, Coonce launched a unique partnership that merged his interests and his jobs. Coonce co-founded Green Greeks of ASU when he worked as the building manager supervisor at the Memorial Union. Many of the students he hired at the MU were in fraternities and sororities.
“I saw an opportunity for the sustainability side pillar that the university had and the student engagement that Greek Life had, and I thought that would be a perfect mesh to kind of meet those two in the middle,” he said.
Green Greeks of ASU is a student organization dedicated to increasing the culture of sustainability among ASU fraternities and sororities. They’ve done hiking cleanups, they’re working to launch a community gardening project at the Greek Leadership Village and more.
During his time at ASU, Coonce was also involved with the Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity and Greenlight Solutions. He also worked at the front desk of the Hassayampa residence hall and as a bartender at ASU Gammage. From all this work and all his experiences during college, Coonce learned a lot about what he wants to do in the future and the person he wants to be. He especially appreciated the experience he had with his business fraternity.
“What I really liked about Delta Sigma Pi was their zeroed-in focus on professional development mixing in with the brotherhood aspect of having Greek letters. That combination really spoke to me personally about how I wanted to navigate not only my college career but my long-term career as well,” he said.
As he prepared for graduation, Coonce reflected on his experience and shared his advice for other Sun Devils with ASU Student Life.
Steven Coonce
Question: What was your “aha” moment, when you realized you wanted to study the field you majored in?
Answer: It was before I went to college, and I was working at UPS loading trucks. I was also a back-of-house inventory auditor at Toys “R” Us during that same time. I was working about 80 hours a week. This was before I decided to go to college and this was a good point in my life to figure out I wanted to go to college based on these jobs that I was working.
I was doing on-the-ground work with what business operations was. I was loading trucks and working in the sorting of what was happening at UPS, and I was working on the sales floor and in the back of house with inventory at Toys “R” Us so I could kind of see the operations of where the rubber meets the road in business.
That was where I think I started loving supply chain, because I loved figuring out how things got done.
Q: What’s something you learned while at ASU — in the classroom or otherwise — that surprised you, that changed your perspective?
A: My professor in ENG 302, Elizabeth Ferszt, was explaining the power of writing to my class. She was kind of explaining more about the power of the written word and what you’re able to do with how you speak and your language and that it can bring people to trust you, and you can have powerful persuasion.
And that kind of changed my whole perspective about how you can use writing and what you say as a powerful tool rather than it just being something to meet a word count. So for me, that was something that I think really changed how I look at how I try to articulate myself not only with how I speak but also with how I write.
Q: Why did you choose ASU?
A: I’m from Murrieta, but I actually went to high school here in Phoenix. My grades were fine after high school, but they weren’t anything amazing. And I knew I wanted to come back to Arizona after living in California.
I didn’t really like where I was at in California, maybe because of the 80-hour-a-week jobs. After doing that I knew I wanted to go to college. I just didn’t know where or what I’d do, and ASU was kind of just the backyard of where I went to high school.
ASU is measured by who they include and not by who they exclude, and that is fantastic and it allowed me the opportunity to come get my education even though I wasn’t maybe the cream of the crop of high school graduates.
Q: Which professor taught you the most important lesson while at ASU?
A: I had so many great professors. A theme that I’ve seen from a lot of professors is that the best professors are able to show their passion for what they do.
One specific professor who taught me an important lesson was Robert Wiedmer, my supply management professor. It was just his high energy and passion for what he was teaching us and what he was going over with what was going on in with what was happening within the world and how it was important for us as people of higher education and having the privilege to have this knowledge, to be aware of what was happening in the world and try to do our best to make it a better place.
Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to those still in school?
A: I would say just don’t ever stop continuing to make connections with people with different perspectives. I think that ASU is an amazing place to be able to connect with people from different backgrounds than yourself.
Don’t stop when you become a junior or senior and you think you’ve found your own group. Always continue to meet new people and see new perspectives. Continue to meet new people and engage with them and continue to put in the work with people you’ve already met because it takes work to maintain those friendships and relationships. And little investments in that will pay off really big in the long term.
… Surround yourself with people that you see as better than you. If you’re able to do that, you’re able to see what you can push your own limits to.
Q: What was your favorite spot on campus, whether for studying, meeting friends or just thinking about life?
A: Every semester it has actually changed. When I was really really involved in Delta Sigma Pi, I would hang out on Dean’s Patio all the time. A lot of the people in the organization were there and we celebrated successes and mourned failures in that place.
It was an amazing place to meet people who had the same business mindset as me, and that was a lot of fun to be in that environment. Other semesters, it was at the MU, just engaging with people from other majors and understanding their backgrounds and being at the Starbucks.
I had to strategically plan my college career based on what my abilities were within my grades, so when I made the decision to switch from a Bachelor of Arts to a Bachelor of Science, specifically into supply chain, I distinctly remember that was at the fountain at W. P. Carey with the blue lounge chairs. I would hang out there every once in a while and just put everything away. I wouldn’t even listen to music, I’d just kind of hang out and listen to the birds and just try to focus in on what was it I wanted to focus in on for that semester or school year.
Q: What are your plans after graduation?
A: I just accepted an offer to work for Honeywell Aerospace. I will be working in their engines department working in automation, integrating automation and the industrial internet of things, integrating those technologies into their manufacturing facilities for their engines.
Q: If someone gave you $40 million to solve one problem on our planet, what would you tackle?
A: One big problem on our planet that doesn’t make sense to me is food and nutrition. People are malnourished all around the world, even in the United States. It’s upsetting to see and it’s a part of wealth inequality as well, and something strategic would have to be done with the $40 million to put a system in place that would be sustainable to continue providing services to those who are underserved. There are people who are consuming more than they need to, and I think that’s a big issue.