“You want to build your own internal Hall of Fame that adheres to what you know, what you love and the people who define a childhood for you,” he said. “I was fascinated to think about and write about the stories of the basketball communities that I grew up in that were players who were ‘LeBron-like’ to me before LeBron.”

Part poetry, memoir and meditation on history and modern culture, “There’s Always This Year” was selected as �鶹��Ƶ’s 2026-27 Common Reading. Incoming first-year students read the book over the summer before exploring it from a variety of perspectives with their First-Year Foundations instructors during their first year at �鶹��Ƶ.

Abdurraqib, a native of Columbus, Ohio, is the author of several poetry and essay collections and books that have earned national acclaim. His 2021 book, “A Little Devil in America,” was a finalist for the National Book Award, National Book Critics Circle Award and PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay. It won the 2022 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction and the Gordon Burn Prize.

For the Common Reading lecture, Abdurraqib sat down with Paula Patch, teaching professor of English, for a conversation in Alumni Gym. Interspersed with selected readings from the book, their discussion explored Abdurraqib’s writing process, the stories he chooses to tell and the people and places that shape his work.

“There’s Always This Year” is divided into four quarters, like a basketball game played by Abdurraqib’s favorite team, the Cleveland Cavaliers. But the structure took time to develop, and Abdurraqib readily described his initial draft as “bad.”

“I really took seriously the conceit of the countdown, and so the whole thing was flipped. The fourth quarter was once the first quarter. So, it began backwards. It was difficult, but it wasn’t good, and I think this idea that I had written a very hard book, I was so proud of that,” he said. “I remember feeling so proud when I turned it into my editor … She was very impressed by the rigor of it, but it wasn’t a good book. So, I think one thing that is challenging for writers is to humble oneself.”

Abdurraqib said he often begins writing without knowing exactly what a book will become, allowing curiosity to guide the process.

“The function is, I have a single curiosity that around it has a garden that has not yet bloomed and I’m writing to find the proper ways to water that and feed that,” he said. “I really do think you can come to this book and get reflected back to you what you most want. … I think the idea of writing a book was to create these small illusions to give people the idea that they’re reading one thing when they’re actually reading something else.”

Abdurraqib still lives in Columbus and feels a strong sense of responsibility to the city and the people who shaped him. That connection emerged throughout the conversation as he reflected on what it means to call a place home — and what it means to document that place as it changes.

“I really value that people there have known me since I was a kid, and I lot of people looked out for me since I was kid,” he said. “(The city) is just a bunch of gray, monochromatic columns. They’re tall, gray, metal … that no one really lives in because the city is trying to build itself up for a population it imagines will arrive, and it’s doing that at the expense of the population that already exists. So there’s a way that staying there and writing from the perspective of the city, both the city that is and the city that was, is an archival tool.”

That responsibility to people and place also informs how Abdurraqib thinks about mentorship. He told the audience that mentorship does not always have to take a traditional form.

He recalled a group of children who were beaten by police after stealing candy from a store. In response, drug dealers Abdurraqib grew up around began asking the children to hold their jewelry while they played basketball, paying them for the task.

For Abdurraqib, that seemingly small gesture offered a different possibility to young people in his community — and expanded his understanding of what it means to look out for someone else.

“That’s a level of mentorship that builds an ideology that still propels me to this day,” he said. “I ask the question of, ‘What of myself can I offer to someone that might rescue them momentarily from another life that is different from their current life?’”

In the latest U.S. News and World Report “Best Colleges” guide, �鶹��Ƶ was ranked No. 100 among national universities and, among private universities, �鶹��Ƶ is ranked No. 55. The National Universities category includes institutions across the country with a broad range of undergraduate majors as well as master’s and doctoral programs, with many also producing significant academic research.

�鶹��Ƶ joined the National Universities category in 2019 and has steadily strengthened its position while maintaining national leadership in undergraduate teaching and high-impact educational experiences.

In addition to being ranked No. 1 for undergraduate teaching for the sixth straight year, �鶹��Ƶ is the only school ranked in the Top 15 across all eight categories included in U.S. News’ “Programs that Enhance Student Experience” rankings. The categories highlight academic and cocurricular programs that are closely linked to student success and positive learning outcomes.

�鶹��Ƶ was again recognized as one of the country’s most innovative schools, earning a No. 8 ranking in the category. The Most Innovative national universities list includes those making innovative improvements in curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology or facilities.

The university earned three No. 1 rankings, for Undergraduate Teaching, Learning Communities and First-Year Experiences, while also placing among the nation’s top five for Study Abroad, Service Learning and Senior Capstone experiences.

�鶹��Ƶ’s rankings include:

• #1 – Undergraduate Teaching
• #1 – Learning Communities
• #1 – First-Year Experiences
• #4 (tied) – Study Abroad
• #4 – Senior Capstone
• #5 – Service Learning
• #8 (tied) – Most Innovative
• #11 (tied) – Co-ops/Internships
• #12 (tied) – Undergraduate Research/Creative Projects
• #13 (tied) – Writing in the Disciplines

�鶹��Ƶ’s continued success across the rankings reflects the university’s longstanding emphasis on engaged and experiential learning, close relationships among students, faculty and staff, and a comprehensive educational experience that extends beyond the classroom.

“This year’s U.S. News & World Report rankings reflect what �鶹��Ƶ has long known: exceptional teaching and student success go hand in hand,” said �鶹��Ƶ President Connie Ledoux Book. “The rankings are a powerful affirmation of the value and outcomes of an �鶹��Ƶ education and the university’s teacher-scholar-mentor model. From an �鶹��Ƶ student’s first year, when they are immediately engaged and empowered, to the moment they walk across the graduation stage and beyond, �鶹��Ƶ faculty are intentional about creating opportunities that prepare students to be leaders of impact in this ever-changing world.”

U.S. News & World Report has been producing college rankings since 1983. The rankings are based on an extensive annual data survey of institutions along with opinion surveys of university faculty and administrators. 

At �鶹��Ƶ, community-based learning is fundamentally an academic endeavor in which engagement in projects and activities takes place through reciprocal and mutually beneficial partnerships with the greater community designed to advance the public good. It is an experiential education approach that involves collaborative relationships, guided by the expertise of professors and community-based practitioners, to combine student learning with community needs as an integrated component of a course. The partnerships between �鶹��Ƶ and communities engage students with entities such as nonprofit organizations, schools, government agencies, or locally owned businesses.

This year, 19 faculty members have been selected for four extended faculty development programs: Community-Based Learning Faculty Scholars, Community-Based Learning Research Scholars, Community-Based Learning Course Development Grants, and a First-Year Foundations Community Engaged Community of Practice.

Five �鶹��Ƶ faculty members have been selected as Community-Based Learning Faculty Scholars for 2026-27. Over the course of this academic year, they will meet regularly to learn more about pedagogy and practices, devise ways to incorporate these practices into their teaching, and receive a stipend for their work.Frank Gentry, Assistant Teaching Professor of Management
Meleena Gil, Assistant Professor of English
Lauren Guilmette, Associate Professor of Philosophy
Nina Namaste, Professor of Spanish
Nikita Shepherd, Assistant Professor of History

Three �鶹��Ƶ faculty members have been selected as Community-Based Learning Research Scholars for 2026-27. Each will work on an independent research project during the academic year and will receive a stipend for their efforts. They are:
Dillan Bono-Lunn, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Public Policy
Tony Reyes, Assistant Professor of Human Service Studies
Carol Smith, Professor of Wellness

Three faculty members have been awarded Community-Based Learning Course Development Grants for 2026-28. They will spend the next two years developing, teaching and assessing their community-based learning courses. Additionally, three faculty members were awarded these grants for 2025-27. They are now in the teaching and assessment phases of their grants. These grants are supported by the Kernodle Center for Civic Life and funded through a grant from the Frueauff Foundation.

2026-28 Community-Based Learning Course Development Grant recipients:
Donna Boyette, Assistant Professor of Accounting
Smaraki Mohanty, Assistant Professor of Marketing
Bethanny Sudibyo, Assistant Professor of Spanish

2025-27 Community-Based Learning Course Development Grant recipients:
Lisa Buchanan, Associate Professor of Education
Sandra Darfour-Oduro, Assistant Professor of Public Health Studies
Chris Nelson, Assistant Professor of Marketing

Five faculty are engaging in a pilot community of practice entitled “First-Year Foundations Community Engagement” focused on broadening first-year student community-based learning opportunities. This community of practice is a partnership between the Kernodle Center and the �鶹��Ƶ Core Curriculum with support from Nina Namaste, Assistant Director of First Year Seminars in the �鶹��Ƶ Core Curriculum, Heather Lindeman, Coordinator of ENG 1100.
Rebecca Bagley, Assistant Professor of Communication Design
Catherine Bowlin, Assistant Teaching Professor of English
Archie Crowley, Assistant Professor of English
Brooks Depro, Associate Professor of Economics
Celia Hameury, Assistant Professor of Engineering

These faculty development programs are mentored by Elena Kennedy, Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Faculty Fellow for Community-Based Learning.  Applications for the 2027-28 programs will be available next spring. In the meantime, there are two upcoming faculty development opportunities:

Essentials of Community-Based Learning Workshop for National Campuses   
Wednesday, Sept. 16, 3:30 – 5 p.m., Virtual

This virtual workshop is for faculty and staff at �鶹��Ƶ’s national campuses.
Are you interested in creating a more authentic learning experience in your course by engaging with community partners? Could the learning objectives for your course be enhanced through community engagement? Have you ever wondered how community-based learning works and why reflection is central to that pedagogy? This workshop is appropriate for faculty members who are developing a community-based course, designing a project or assignment that involves community engagement, or are curious about community-based learning pedagogies in general. The workshop will allow for interaction with experienced faculty, and staff members from the Kernodle Center for Civic Life and Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning.

Campus-Community Networking Hour  
Thursday, Oct. 22, 4:30-5:30 p.m.

You are invited to join the Kernodle Center for Civic Life for an afternoon of networking that will bring together �鶹��Ƶ faculty, staff, and community partners to discuss opportunities for collaboration, including community-engaged courses. Enjoy hors d’oeuvres and a chance to connect with many partner organizations and campus departments. You will leave with valuable connections for future partnerships.

The article, “,” was co-authored by Jennifer Stephens, director of Academic-Residential Partnerships and assistant professor of education; Jill McSweeney, assistant director of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching & Learning and assistant professor of wellness; Nina Namaste, professor of Spanish and assistant director of First-Year Seminars in the �鶹��Ƶ Core Curriculum; and Brandy S. Propst, director of �鶹��Ƶ 1010 and assistant director of Academic Advising.

The collaborative nature of this work is, in itself, a unique reflection of �鶹��Ƶ’s approach to the first-year experience, as it brings together offices across academic affairs and student life to create a unified and campus-wide ethos to the first-year experience, which they argue is essential but often missing in institutional approaches to the first-year experience.

The piece explores how institutions should view the first-year experience as a culmination beyond first-year seminars, and that in doing so, it requires us to see this as a unique pedagogical context that differs from teaching students in their sophomore to senior years of college. The authors present a framework for faculty development in First-Year Pedagogies, incorporating CATL’s Teaching for Equity and Inclusion work, and faculty, staff, and student data at �鶹��Ƶ. The framework asks educators to think intentionally about who they teach, what they teach, and how they teach, all within a commitment to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusivity.

The article outlines how other institutions can put this framework into practice, by sharing how over the last two years, �鶹��Ƶ has developed specific faculty development opportunities to bring together faculty and staff from across first-year experiences (e.g., residential learning communities, gateway major courses, advising seminars). The goal of this work has been to build shared values, language, and classroom strategies focused on preparing students to be engaged, autonomous, and self-directed learners during their college degree and supporting students through the numerous transitions they experience during their first-year at college.

This work reflects why �鶹��Ƶ has earned national recognition for the first-year undergraduate experience and emphasizes the importance of uplifting and supporting staff and faculty in order to continue to best support our first-year students.

The workshop, titled Launching and Sustaining a Common Reading Program that Works, was facilitated by members of the Penguin Random House Common Reads advisory board, all of whom lead Common Reading programs at colleges and universities across the United States.

Workshop topics included the evolving nature of Common Reading programs,  making a case for launching or sustaining a program, program models and logistics, title selection, program assessment, and time for feedback and mentoring of attendees.

Patch joined the Penguin Random House Common Reads Advisory Board in 2025. The board meets regularly to identify titles and topics for Common Reading programs that choose Penguin Random House titles.

All new students are provided a free digital copy of the book before coming to �鶹��Ƶ and are invited to attend the author’s keynote address, but for Campoverdi’s event, part of the �鶹��Ƶ Speaker Series, she wanted to do something different.

“I purposely am not behind a podium,” said Campoverdi. “I’m not an expert on being first gen, you all are experts as much as I am an expert on being a first and only. You’re an expert on whatever thresholds you’re crossing. So, I’m not here to lecture anyone on this experience, I’m here to have a conversation with you all.”

And a conversation was had for more than an hour as several students asked questions of Campoverdi about her experiences as a first-generation college student, her work as an aide in the Obama administration and the process of writing her book.

Between the bullet points

The memoir details Campoverdi’s life as a “child of welfare,” born to an immigrant single mother in Los Angeles, who went on to be White House aide, Harvard graduate and a candidate for U.S. Congress. In 2024, Campoverdi also founded the First Gen Fund, a non-profit that provides unrestricted hardship grants to first-generation students.

“When I would be invited to schools and someone would read my bio, and it would be all the bullet points and it sounded so shiny and glossy and linear, and it made so much sense what I did, and then I did that, I knew that wasn’t the full story,” she said. “I knew that the spaces between those bullet points were actually the real story, and that looked very different.”

Omar Illesca Reyes ’27, a Labcorp-Alamance Scholar in the Odyssey Program and �鶹��Ƶ Academy mentor, sat on stage with Campoverdi, alongside Selma Maric ‘27, who introduced Campoverdi; Kenneth Brown, assistant director of First-Generation Student Support Services; and Paula Patch, senior lecturer in English and associate director for in the �鶹��Ƶ Core Curriculum. Illesca Reyes asked Campoverdi about feelings of “imposter syndrome” as a first-generation student and in her later roles.

“All of us at some point are going to find ourselves in a space where people might not relate to where we come from and what we’ve experienced,” said Campoverdi. “And you noticing that and not feeling good about that, doesn’t all go into a bucket of feeling like an imposter. She added, “Let yourself clock it and not make that mean something bad about you, because it doesn’t.”

Illesca Reyes reflected that getting to speak with Campoverdi was personal and emotional.

“The struggles are real for a first-generation student, and it’s nice that a light is being shone on them,” said Illesca Reyes, who is studying engineering. “I felt like I was being heard throughout the book, and I felt myself in her shoes multiple times.”

‘Be it all unapologetically’

In her memoir, Campoverdi reflects on the “contradictory extremes” of her life, from being a gang member’s girlfriend to working in the White House, arguing that all of those extremes can exist together.

“Some of us are complicated,” Campoverdi said in response to a student question about finding belonging in multiple spaces. “Own all of these things together at the same time. I sit on stages all the time, and people ask me, ‘What would you say to 16-year-old Alejandra who was dating that guy? What would you tell her now from where you are?’ And I said ‘She’s right here. I’m the same me.’ So stop trying to find the answer. There’s no answer. Just be it all unapologetically.”

Her memoir also works to “shatter the one-dimensional glossy narrative” about what it takes to achieve the American Dream. She notes it was harder to get from her childhood to college than from college to the White House.

“I’ve experienced the American dream,” she said, as a student asked her response to the concept. “I believe education is the driver of the American dream for many of us. It isn’t the only way, but it is for most of us.”

Campoverdi spent the day at �鶹��Ƶ, including hosting a storytelling workshop for students and faculty, in collaboration with the Center for Access and Success. Her openness for conversation resonated with students like Daniella Alonzo Lopez ’28, a scholar in the Odyssey Program, who received the Leon and Lorraine Watson scholarship.

“Sometimes along the journey, you think you’re navigating all of this by yourself, but there’s truly a community of people,” said Alonzo Lopez ’28, a marketing and business analytics double major. “I’m always looking for mentors and people to encourage me and inspire me to continue. So I’m glad to be here and hear her. Getting to meet her was almost like an older sister.”

Redefine success

As Campoverdi heard from students focusing on her success as a first-generation student, she encouraged them to also think about how success can be more than just what’s on paper.

“You can be the first generation to go to college or the first generation to have a professional job or break a cycle, the first generation to move across the country or the first generation to X,Y, Z,” said Campoverdi. “But being the first generation to break the cycle of living in survival mode is just as important. Being the first generation to not live in fight or flight is just as important. Being the first generation to allow yourself balance and rest, that’s important, too.”

“I’ve experienced the American dream. I believe education is the driver of the American dream for many of us. It isn’t the only way, but it is for most of us.”

Alejandra Campoverdi, award-winning author of “First Gen”

She ended the event by reminding students about how far they’ve come in their lives and encouraged them to continue being vulnerable as it can serve as a “connective tissue.”

“When I look out in this room, I see a lot of people who have a lot in common, and I think that’s more important than ever. So keep telling your stories, keep turning towards that vulnerability. It doesn’t make you weak, it makes you strong and it will ultimately make you a better professional,” Campoverdi said.

Hollingsworth is spending the summer working at the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning (CATL), and continuing the project through an independent study. During the spring 2025 semester, Hollingsworth began a 4999 research credit with Jill McSweeney, assistant director of the CATL and assistant professor of wellness, on a project centered around creating a board game that assists first-year students with their transition into university.

First-year undergraduate students experience social (e.g. making friends), academic (e.g. harder subject material), and/or emotional (e.g. loneliness) challenges transitioning to university, which can impact student mental health and lead to a reduction in student success and retention. The project uses game-based learning, which offers a dynamic, interactive and self-directed way to engage first-year students while equipping them with essential skills for navigating social, academic and emotional transitional challenges.

This project was developed in collaboration with faculty members at the , a large public research university.

“Their perspective of the first-year experience is slightly different from �鶹��Ƶ’s, which allows us to test our research in a broader environment,” said Hollingsworth. “For example, the University of Iceland is not a residential university and therefore scenarios regarding living on campus or having a roommate are not applicable. Similarly, a lot of students are not entering their first year right from high school, many having full-time jobs, families, or previous degrees when they come in.”

The game is inspired by games such as “The Game of Life,” where students move around a board representing their first year at university, encountering scenarios depicting common dilemmas or events that they might encounter at real life university.

For example, players may experience an event around completing a roommate agreement, just like students do at �鶹��Ƶ; or have to choose between studying or going to a campus event with friends the night before a midterm. By completing dilemmas and events, students are presented with decisions that they will have to make throughout their first year, often around things that they may not have thought about.

These decisions have consequences, sometimes it might be negative and they might increase their stress (a natural response they will have to learn to balance through their first year, and in our game something that students will want to manage through engaging with pathways like taking a yoga class with �鶹��Ƶ’s Campus Recreation and Health Promotion), and/or develop a skill (either academic, social, or emotional) allowing them to decide how they might like to personally develop over their first year.

“The game encourages students to reflect on the importance of their first year being much more than just their academic experience,” said Hollingsworth. “Engaging in activities and being accountable for their decisions allows them to grow and complete the goals that they have chosen for themselves, and of course, completing goals allows them to get victory points to win the game. Through the exposure to issues that students might face by playing this game, we hope that they will become more prepared for their transition into university.”

This summer, Hollingswoth has continued the project, spending time refining mechanics and creating a physical version for playtesting. Playtesting is important in game design because it allows the designer to receive important feedback to improve the game. Hollingsworth and her collaborators did an initial playtest with three �鶹��Ƶ faculty and staff teaching �鶹��Ƶ 1010 in the fall, and from their feedback, they continued to adjust and refine the game in order to have a full prototype to test with our international collaborators from Iceland.

With the help of funding from the Center for Research on Global Engagement (CRGE), Hollingsworth was also able to travel to Iceland to work with her collaborators from the University of Iceland, where they did three rounds of playtesting. First, they playtested with two students, and others from the university then with two groups of four, combining faculty and staff from the university.

“The trip to Iceland was a wonderful experience to improve our research and model international research collaboration, but also to explore Iceland,” said Hollingsworth.

Hollingsworth will continue to edit the game based on feedback and will collect data from having �鶹��Ƶ 1010 classes play this game next fall. Similarly, collaborators in Iceland intend to collect data during one of their introductory university courses in the fall.

The Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience provides an ongoing forum where higher education professionals can share experiences, concerns and accomplishments related to supporting student learning, development, and success in the first college year.

Staff and faculty from �鶹��Ƶ shared best practices from �鶹��Ƶ’s U.S. News #1 ranked First-Year Experience program and #1 ranked Learning Communities with colleagues from other colleges and universities. Attendees from �鶹��Ƶ included:

• Jen Platania, associate provost for Academic Affairs and associate professor of economics
• Eleanor Finger, assistant vice president for Student Life, dean of Campus Life and assistant professor
• Jennifer Stephens, director of academic-residential partnerships and assistant professor of education
• Kirsten Carrier, assistant dean of Campus Life and director of Residence Life
• Jill McSweeney, assistant director of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning and assistant professor of wellness
• Paula Patch, senior lecturer in English and associate director of First-Year Initiatives in the �鶹��Ƶ Core Curriculum
• Brandy Propst, director of �鶹��Ƶ 1010 and assistant director of academic advising

Additionally, Jennifer Stephens and Kirsten Carrier presented their work at the conference in a session titled “Living & Learning at �鶹��Ƶ: A Framework for First-Year Residential Learning.” This presentation discussed the creation of a new residential learning outcomes framework that gave faculty and staff working on the initiative common goals for programming and assessable learning outcomes. The framework was created as a result of the Residential Campus Strategic plan, which aims to achieve portions of Boldly �鶹��Ƶ, the university’s current strategic plan. Attendees at the session gained practical strategies on how they might create this type of framework for their residential learning initiatives and were able to hear how assessment results have informed updates and changes to the framework for the future.

Why did you want to go on the AIL trip?

I’ve participated in this trip the past couple of years and it has been a great way to connect with incoming first-year students as they get ready for their college transition. When you’re out on the trail with no cell phone service the students have no choice but to actively engage with each other. There end up being wonderful conversations about what students are excited about, what makes them nervous and how they plan to approach their college experience. As an educator, there is nothing more fulfilling than being able to walk with students on that journey.

Are you a big camper?

I love spending time outdoors. I was involved in scouting during my youth and in college and grad school spent five summers as a summer camp counselor and program director. Hiking is a regular part of our vacations as a family and I enjoy any chance I can get to be out in nature.

What were you hoping to get out of the trip?

For me, it is nice to unplug for the week and be singularly focused on the aspect of my job that I love best – supporting students in their growth and development. Titles and roles don’t matter when you’re out on the trail and the ability to spend concentrated time with a group of students is a gift. It’s also fulfilling to watch the upper-class students who serve as trip facilitators developing their leadership skills and supporting their peers.

How do you think this trip prepared students for their first year at �鶹��Ƶ?

The transition to college is a big adjustment. These summer first-year experiences can be a great way for students to connect with some of their new classmates and jump-start making new friends and finding their place. For some students, they were enjoying a backpacking experience they love, but in other cases, students were doing something they’d never tried before and challenging themselves in the process.

Did you see any changes in the students during the week?

Whenever you can take students from this generation to an environment where their cell phones don’t work and they are off social media for a week, great things happen. It was fun to watch them engage with each other and to see friendships forming in front of your eyes. It’s also wonderful to see students scaling heights, backpacking for the first time, or doing something they didn’t think they were capable of – it sets the stage for their college experience.

What were your rose, bud and thorn of the trip?

This is a great question – each evening there is a similar reflection on the activities of the day.  The highlight of the trip was definitely the time on the trail, talking with students and enjoying the beauty of the Pisgah National Forest. The thorns of a trip like this are always the aches and pains that remind you that you aren’t in your twenties anymore. The buds are the relationships that these students just started – I cannot wait to see what is in store for them as they arrive on campus this fall.

Final thoughts?

For any student who missed this opportunity this summer, I hope they will check out the opportunities through �鶹��Ƶ Outdoors when they get to campus.

The FSE programs give incoming �鶹��Ƶ students a preview of the university during the summer before their first semester. The programs are part of the university’s commitment to experiential learning and help students develop self-awareness, enhance relationships and define community in preparation for their �鶹��Ƶ experience.

Engage, which ran from July 9-12, is focused on community service, with students spending the week living in a residence hall on campus, exploring Alamance County and volunteering in the local community. During the nearly weeklong program, the students volunteered with the Boys & Girls Club of Alamance County and in Whitsett, North Carolina.

The perfect opportunity

Jordyn Lewis ’28, from Harrisburg, North Carolina, is coming to �鶹��Ƶ with her twin sister and while her sister chose to do an Adventures in Leadership program this summer, Lewis wanted a focus on community service, something she did in high school.

“Community service has always been an interest of mine, trying to give back and help people out,” said Lewis, who will be part of the accelerated 3+1 business dual-degree program in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business. “So, when I saw that I could do the Engage program over the summer, even before I got to �鶹��Ƶ, and make connections with people who also wanted to do service, I thought ‘this is perfect.’”

The Kernodle Center for Civic Life hosts the FSE programs and connect students with community based and experiential learning opportunities while at �鶹��Ƶ.

“The Engage program is a great opportunity to not only showcase all the wonderful resources that incoming students have access to but also showcase the opportunities to get engaged in a community that they will be in for the next four years,” said Abigail Wiatrek, assistant director of the Kernodle Center.

Being different together

Like Lewis, community service is also important to Joseph Enclerio ’28, from Wayne, Pennsylvania, and he wanted to get a head start on his Experiential Learning Requirement (ELR). All �鶹��Ƶ students are required to complete the ELR before graduation, which must include at least two experiential learning opportunities through any of the five �鶹��Ƶ Experiences: global engagement, service learning, leadership, internships and undergraduate research.

“I thought ‘I love service, it’s a graduation requirement, it works out perfectly,’” said Enclerio, who plans to study accounting through the accelerated business 3+1 dual degree program.

“Getting the students comfortable on campus and out in the community and watching them thrive and ask ‘how can I come back to volunteer during the year?’ is confirmation that �鶹��Ƶ is going to be the right place for them,” said Wiatrek.

While at Peacehaven, the students helped around the farm, including cutting back branches along trails while also continuing to bond with one another. The community farm serves adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

“It’s great for the students to come and be a part of a community where there are a variety of abilities and to just work with people that might be a little bit different,” said Elizabeth Strickland, community engagement coordinator for Peacehaven. “Our slogan is ‘let’s be different together’ and I love that and have really embraced that mindset.”

A broader view

This year’s cohort was also able to do a ropes course activity, see and experience different areas of campus and tour downtown Burlington.

One of those areas of campus was the The Maker Hub in downtown �鶹��Ƶ where the students participated in the Marshmallow Challenge – a design and team-building exercise that tasks students to build the tallest structure out of spaghetti noodles with a marshmallow on top.

Sofia Barnes ’28, Delia Moulton ’28 and Henry Pittman ’28 formed a group to solve the challenge together. Barnes first came to campus for Scholarship Weekend and she knew �鶹��Ƶ was the right fit. She also knew she wanted to familiarize herself with campus before the fall so the Engage program gave her what she wanted and the opportunity to see more than what campus has to offer.

“I got to stay in a dorm, which is nice, and I liked the idea of being able to get to know campus before everyone got here and it’s good getting to know other people,” said Barnes, who is from Long Island, New York and plans to study chemistry. “It’s a good inside look, on a miniature scale, of what the community is going to be like, so I’m excited.”

Finding community

�鶹��Ƶ was the first university Moulton toured on her college search – 24 schools later, she knew �鶹��Ƶ was going to stay number one. Even though she is from nearby Greensboro, Moulton says the Engage program was still a beneficial opportunity for her summer.

“I wanted to get to know the campus and the people before actually being thrown into classes,” said Moulton, who is majoring in political science.

For the students in the Engage program, it’s all about not just helping their new community, but finding a community as well.

“When I toured �鶹��Ƶ, you could tell there was a very strong sense of community, and diversity and inclusion was important and that there was a place for everybody here,” said Lewis. “You feel like you belong.”