Naomi Mangini walked through the glass door of the Student Life Office. Unsure of what to expect — but definitely not a room full of balloons, floor to ceiling.
A 17-year-old freshman in fall 2024, Mangini entered the office, led to this abode for student government, a short walk from the bus stop at the center of campus after an invitation by her cousin Brody Price. Price, then president of Las Positas College Student Government (LPCSG) for the 2023-24 school year, welcomed her with open arms — and a task: blow up more balloons.
“What could this possibly be for?” Mangini asked.
Officially, it was for an event put on by LPCSG each semester to introduce students to clubs on campus. The October event was dubbed Spooktacular Club Fair.
Unofficially, it was an introduction to a new normal for Mangini. A chance for a fresh start with a new purpose. After years of pulling herself out of the fog of trauma and fear, she walked into a room that would help her find meaning in her struggle: serving others.
From blowing up balloons to LPC student body president.
“She kind of embodies this kind of pillar,” Price said. “She never complained. Holding up a lot of other people. A lot of people in her family have had issues, and she’s always there for them. Even when she had her own issues, she always keeps pushing through. I’ve never seen her really give up.”
At the height of the pandemic, March 2020, Mangini found herself in an abyss of darkness that wasn’t quite her own. It was consuming and suffocating nonetheless. A loved one — whose identity she keeps private — felt trapped in a shadowed place, searching in vain for a path to the light while dealing with severe mental health issues.
As the eldest child, she instinctively became a caretaker, assuring her family she would help them get through the crisis . No one tells you how terrifying it is to be between someone and the end.
“When you’re in that state,” Mangini said, “you lose everything in the present, and you stop trying to see the future. Once you see your future fall apart, you don’t see it at all.”
Ultimately, what she lost didn’t compare to what she gained. Her relative recovered. Her family survived. Eventually, so did she. The sacrifices she made helped shape the woman she’d become.
This virtuous behavior is what led Mangini to student government. She wanted to help those who can’t help themselves. Dealing with her family issues, a growing awareness of the corruption of the world and the weight of her life crumbling around her, forged a new passion — resilience and strength. As the newly elected president of the LPCSG, she’s a caretaker by choice.
“I promise to protect the students’ free speech and be an advocate for the rights of students on campus,” she said. “Not just here in student life but at a higher level. To make sure that people are … having their full college experience without as many worries as, you know, college might expect,” Mangini said. We want to support programs that help these students to succeed.”
NAOMI Mangini thought she’d never be a politician. But the adversities of her life made student government the perfect vehicle for her caretaker tendencies. (Photo by Sam Barnes/The Express)
Mangini, who turned 20 on Sept. 2, grew up in Dublin. As a kid, she filled every room with so much light — embodying the stereotypical nerdy, goody-two-shoes. She carried two books to school everyday out of fear she would finish one too quickly .
She would cry when she received a “B.” Tears would pour out of her eyes as she stared at her test, circled in red ink, “B.” Anything less than perfect, she called it a “Naomi F.” She was that driven and ambitious, a pilot in her own story.
But even the brightest can be dimmed by dark clouds.
The impetus for what would come began In 2016, when Mangini was in fifth grade, she was drawn to politics. Her media consumption, once filled with cartoons and rainbows, shifted to newspapers and KTVU news. Adding current events and world issues into her diet slowly took away her innocent smile. She became overwhelmed with sadness and concern. She was still in elementary school and already aware of the turmoil in the world.
These early years shaped her perspective. She didn’t know it at the time, but her heart was drawn to people. The suffering and mistreatment of others, how they were impacted, how they lived in fear, struck a chord. The phrase, “what she could do to help,” was engraved in her mind. She was moved much more by empathy than ideology. Mangini swore she’d never become a politician.
That’s why, in an ironic twist, her joining student government was a turning point.
“When I came here,” she said, “I actually knew some people who were in student government, and I volunteered here a lot ‘cause I was hanging out with people I knew. I got recommended to join as a senator since I already dedicated multiple hours a week, so I signed up for that.”
She became a politician. A senator in LPCSG. Raising awareness and funds for health and wellness programs. Restocking diapers in the Basic Needs Mini-Market. Sharing her thoughts in Senate meetings. Mangini found joy in helping others.
She was fine with her impact being anonymous, relegated to behind the scenes. She found fulfillment behind the scenes, making Las Positas not just a place students had to be, but a place they wanted to be. She spent so much time serving students, available whenever needed, some jokingly wondered if she had a secret bedroom in the Student Life Office. She confirmed she did not.
“Her presence was a big morale boost,” said Keoni Fedrico, former director of clubs for LPCSG.
But this passion for helping others began at home — and nearly derailed her life.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted a quarantine and halted the interconnectivity of society, forced families into isolation. Many only survived because of their familial bonds.
But for Mangini, her household was held together by loose threads. The family’s struggles only worsened the ramifications of the pandemic. The thought of her relative suffering troubled Mangini. The two have a close bond.
The nation, simultaneously raging through political strife, only exacerbated her angst. She grew paranoid and anxious, afraid of making the wrong step, uttering the wrong words, she walked around on eggshells.
“During that year, we had personal family issues, deep mental health issues, and we almost lost somebody,” she said. “It kind of went over the deep end a little bit for me.”
Worrying and watching as her family suffered proved unhealthy. Mangini’s instincts were to help, no matter the cost. Her focus was divided. She’d suffer if it meant helping her family. The foundation for a life of altruism, the ideology of empathy, was being formed.
She was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. She entered therapy, which didn’t immediately solve things. She cut out extracurricular activities and stopped doing things she enjoyed. Her grades tanked in her junior year of high school. Mangini didn’t get Fs. Her teachers sounded alarms via email, concerned their perennial A student began faltering. She was in survival mode.
Locking in on school was tougher. In danger of flunking out and doing an extra year of high school, she called an audible. In the summer of 2023, before her senior season at Dublin High, Mangini opted to take a state-level test equivalent to a high school diploma. She passed with nearly full points. Just like that, she “dropped out” of high school with a diploma.
What was supposed to be Mangini’s senior year of high school became her freshman year at Las Positas.
She was back on her feet, ready to discover what was next for her. LPC was her chance to see a future once again, reclaim her life.
“She’d never let her issues, or any obstacles, or any kind of scenarios where it’s unfair and she’s at a disadvantage, get to her,” Price said. “She gives it her all.”
She gains confidence from her dedication to the grind. She believes in her potential to achieve anything because of her work ethic, it became her confidence. Canva became her best friend. Someone throws a plastic water bottle in the landfill section? She will sort out every piece of trash, piece by piece, into its proper receptacle.
In one year, she became known as an acclaimed machine in student government. The trauma she experienced built her endurance. She believes she will survive because she already has. Faced with a daunting juxtaposition of options — do whatever it takes, no matter how hard, or be paralyzed by the difficulty — she chose to act. She helped her family instead of sitting idly by in torment. Now she adopts it as a way of life.
AT LPC, Mangini found the fresh start she needed after family trauma impacted her mental health. (Photo by Ian Kapsalis/The Express)
Oddly enough, the same experience developed another complex: a fear of burdening others.
“But in the end, it led me to have deeper insights into what other people are feeling,” she said.
Mangini did not run for president because of title and the prestige. She ran for the position because it l was the most direct way to support others. She campaigned with her slogan in mind: “Passionate. Driven. Here for You.”
She was inaugurated into office on May 8, 2025.
Her goals are straightforward: safeguard students’ free speech, advocate for students’ rights across campus and empower students to pursue their potential.
“I figured out I’ve got to start somewhere,” she said. “If you get into these organizations that can’t change in a single generation, it’s disheartening to work with. I have to look for an active change you can implement.”
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TOP PHOTO: Naomi Mangini brings a perspective of service to her new post as president of Las Positas College Student Governement. (Photo by Sam Barnes/ The Express)
Kiarra Bautista is a staff writer for The Express. Follow her on Instagram @KiarraFaithh.
