For most freshmen, the start of college comes with an array of emotions: excitement, fear and uncertainty – all of which stem from this new experience and uncharted territory. While I was eager to meet friends and take the next steps towards my future career in coming to SHU, it was hard to imagine moving away from home and embracing full independence for the first time. I didn’t know how well I would be able to adapt to this type of change all at once.
When the time finally came to load up the car and make the hour-and-a-half drive to Sacred Heart from my home in southeastern Connecticut, my nerves were high, but, unexpectedly, started to subside upon pulling into campus. While my mind had been clouded with doubts prior to this moment, I suddenly felt that I had ended up exactly where I was meant to be.
The coming days turned into weeks, and I was amazed at how much had already happened over such a short span of time. By this point, I had completed band camp as a member of the marching program to practice the annual SHU field show routine, accustomed to my classes and dorm life and attended the involvement fair to learn more about the different organizations and opportunities that Sacred Heart offers. It didn’t take long to see that there is truly something for each student to enjoy.
Once I reached the end of my first semester, I realized that I wanted to become more active in a musical sense. This led me to join SHU’s chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi, a national honorary band fraternity based around the principles of musicianship, leadership, service and brotherhood, in the spring.
Shortly after my membership began, I recognized both the remarkable commitment and sense of community shared among everyone involved. As a result, I decided to pursue a leadership position as secretary of the chapter, which requires recording the agenda for and minutes from each weekly meeting as well as taking attendance. At the end of my second semester, I was voted into this role. I have now been secretary for the past three years, and this title has helped me tremendously to both strengthen my organizational skills and build deeper bonds with other members.
At the beginning of my junior year, I began to learn more about Spectrum, leading me to enroll in News Writing & Reporting for the spring semester. As someone who has always tried to stay up to date on local and national stories, I was happy to have been assigned to the news section of the paper and offered the opportunity to become an editor for the same section moving into my senior year. This role has reinforced my love for writing by enabling me to expand my knowledge of journalism and various topics related to SHU as well as our outside world.
Upon reflecting on these past four years, I find myself immensely thankful for the way in which college has pushed me out of my comfort zone. I truly believe that if I had not taken steps to become involved, most notably in the band program as well as Spectrum, I would not be the person I am today. My leadership roles have greatly helped me to realize the importance of teamwork and collaboration to support a shared goal that benefits the entire campus community. Beyond this, I have built friendships that will last a lifetime, and I will forever be indebted to Sacred Heart for giving me some of the greatest people imaginable. I often think back to that initial car ride to campus, and I wish I could travel back in time to tell myself just how wonderful this experience would be. While SHU will always be home, I can’t wait to see what my next chapter will bring!
