Welcome back to college classes with advice from our speakers to start the year off great!
Classes are back in session on campuses across the country with thousands of new students swarming from class to class, checking our their college community and looking to start their new lives as a college student.
While the new experience on campus is exciting, it can also be overwhelming for students. There are a million decisions to be made, from which classes to take, where to make friends and how to prioritize school with their social life.
It’s important for everyone on campus to have the most successful, beneficial and rewarding year possible. A few of CAMPUSPEAK’s orientation speakers are excited to kick off the new school year, and have offered advice for those new, or returning students, because we all need a little outside perspective from time to time.
The goals of students range high and wide, and figuring out how to go about making those goals can be difficult. Justin Jones-Fosu, leadership, first year experience and diversity speaker, suggests students to “start off the year knowing how you want to end the year. If you know what you want to accomplish in academics, ‘socialdemics’ and ultimately in life it will be much easier accomplishing it. This is how you can make sure you have the right people around you to help you get to your desired vision.”
What better place to grow into the person you want to become than when in college! Brian C. Johnson, a speaker that uses popular film clips to highlight issues surrounding diversity, fraternity and sorority life, multiculturalism and stereotyping, encourages students to get out of their comfort zone for a dose of new experiences.
“Take advantage of every opportunity you have to meet new people. Whether in the residence hall, the classroom, student organizations, on the athletic field or in the cafeteria. You will have scores of chances to engage with people from all different walks of life—people that can enrich your life. Our communities are only as strong as the links we build together—so get out there and start linking up,” says Brian.
When the difficult times arise, don’t let the challenge derail your semester. Chad Crittenden, a survivor of cancer and a former contestant on the hit reality show Survivor, challenges students to look beyond the circumstances that they’ve been dealt. At the end of his keynote presentation, Chad likes to leave students with this quote from George Bernard Shaw.
“People are always blaming circumstances on who they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world, are the people that get up and look for the circumstances they want. And if they can’t find them, they make them.”
Don’t let the hectic schedules rush you through college. Take it from Mari Ann Callais, a speaker who has worked in higher education for over 16 years.
“Remember, college is more than 140 characters (although you will probably meet that many in one day)! Enjoy your time, make great friends and learn as much about yourself as possible! Becoming the best version of yourself is an adventure—take time to enjoy it,” says Mari Ann.
From everyone at CAMPUSPEAK, we wish all students, faculty and advisors a year of achievements, both academic and personal, happy and healthy relationships and the opportunity to do big things this year on campus.
To learn more about our speakers for your orientation or other programming needs, check out campuspeak.com/speakers.
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