In all honesty, Kent State was not my first-choice school, but I am truly thankful that this is the school I attend. I was drawn to the school wanting to be a fashion design major and the fashion design program here is one of the best in the country.
Other than Rockwell Hall, I knew little to nothing about Kent State. I am a woman of faith, so I went in with little knowledge and prayed for the best.
Before the school year even started, I knew that I needed to prepare myself for a drastic life change. Because college is sometimes seen as an expected next step for high school students, people like me aren’t able to express their anxiety and fear of going off to college. As I have come to recognize, there is a community here of people to help with the transition to college.
I just had to find my community and sense of belonging.
I began to find my place at Kent before classes even started. As a freshman, you are required to attend an orientation called Destination Kent State. I attended DKS at the beginning of summer of 2023. There was a sense of familiarity with DKS. We were all a bunch of students trying to figure out how to navigate this new space. However, I was a minority.
As an African-American and Jamaican-American woman, I did not find a lot of people who looked like me or shared a similar background. While I was used to that reality, it did not help my feelings of imposter syndrome. DKS was also my first time on Kent’s campus. I was able to see how big it was and felt the responsibilities of being a college student.
There was a lot of important information given out during DKS, but there was one table in particular that was most important to me. The Student Multicultural Center (SMC) on campus had a table for students to register for Kupita/Trancisiones or K/T. This program runs through the SMC, and is another new student orientation but specifically for students of color. Before coming to DKS, I already signed up for K/T, and again had no idea what I was getting myself into. I walked by faith and prayed my way through.
On the first day of K/T, I could already tell it would be like no other new student orientation. First, I looked around and was surrounded by people who looked like me, had similar backgrounds, and similar cultures - something I haven’t seen in such a capacity in an academic setting. The student leaders really stood out to me. All the mentors were incredibly welcoming.
From the music, the presentations, and the family activities, I felt as though I found a place here at Kent.
At K/T, I learned about all the resources and opportunities on campus for students of color. More importantly, I learned about the importance of community. College is about advancing your education, gaining a degree and learning about your chosen career. However, college is also about finding out who you are.
What are the values, beliefs, characteristics, experiences, perspectives, etc. that make you who you are? In what ways is there room for growth, improvement and maturity? Every college student is challenged to develop their professional life as well as their personal life, all while studying for finals. That can be a daunting task, but having the proper community helps make that task just a bit easier.
K/T taught me how to foster that community. Every student was given a chance to learn about student organizations such as Black United Students, Sister Circle, the Element Magazine, NEO-Impact, etc. Additionally, we learned where certain buildings are, what advisors are available to us and were given a crash course on how to survive college.
I have grown through the student organizations I am involved in like BUS, Sister Circle, and NEO-Impact, and resources like the SMC, to find community. I have met mentors who have helped me navigate everything from housing situations to figuring out what major program I should be in. I met student leaders who inspired and helped me to get involved on campus.
Probably my favorite part of K/T was meeting two incredible young women who became two of my closest friends.
I have been so blessed to find places and people where I can grow and express who I am along with participating in my cultures.
I have decided to double major in Fashion Design and Fashion Merchandising, and am on track to graduate in 2027. Truthfully, I can say that college itself doesn’t necessarily become easier, however, we become better at handling all the challenging parts of it.
Finding your community, sense of purpose, and reason for being here at Kent will help make transitioning to college much easier.
I am thankful for all the wonderful people I have met through the Student Multicultural Center and encourage every incoming freshman, especially students of color, to find their community. Some advice I would give is that everything happens in a process, things take time and don't forget to manage your time. Most importantly, find people who help you grow into the best version of yourself. You’ll find that college is time dedicated to learning how to thrive in life.