Through her leadership and example both on- and off-campus, Chene strives to help those who are marginalized by society due to their ethnicity, race, gender/gender identity, and/or sexual orientation. She has acted as the co-leader and co-president of Women in Learning and Leadership (WILL) and helped conceive, program, and execute the "Feminist Film Festival" in Winter 2009, a monthly film series on campus.

Chene believes that her experiences at UM-Dearborn have given her the strength to confront challenges with hope, humor and a fighting spirit, since, as Flannery O'Connor noted, "The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it." In addition to helping fellow students through her work at the Writing Center, Chene developed a theatrical production, “Drawing the Shades,” for Sexual Assault Awareness Month. She is also a member of the Director's Transfer Advisory Board Committee (DTAB); a select group of transfer students that help the Office of Admissions recruit other transfer students to UM-Dearborn.