Ah, leadership.

That word rings true on this campus, because everywhere you look you see a different student leader, whether it be a Greek life president, a student worker, a member of honor council or a resident assistant (RA).

I am luckily surrounded by leaders.

My best friend is the definition of a CNU leader. She is the president of Honor Council, a student director, a sister of Greek life, a successful student and a friend. She fully gives of herself and her time for the betterment of our community and because leadership is where she belongs. She is a natural, driven leader who does nothing but improve our school.

My staff of RAs are all leaders. They dabble in various organizations on campus, whether it be honor societies or Greek organizations, on-campus jobs or a cappella groups. They are the cream of the crop when it comes to CNU students and on top of that, they are RAs.

My sorority is full of leaders. It is full of RAs, student workers, presidents and vice presidents of various organizations. Of religious group leaders, of musical group leaders and of honor society members.

These people push me to be a better leader.

Whether I have a position that is large or small, it is important to exemplify leadership on our campus.

Because leadership provides change.

My RA job may not be the biggest leadership position, but it allows me to plan some events or have some conversations that may impact someone.

CNU has pushed me to grow outside my comfort zone.

While I thought I knew and was a leader in high school, the people of CNU completely changed my perspective.

It’s a whole ‘nother world.

The sun has come out.

No more snow, no rain, and weather that’s comfortable enough to wear a jacket and be a little toasty, or a T-shirt and be perfectly comfortable.

I don’t think it’s possible to love my school any more than when the weather is nice.

The Great Lawn is CROWDED with people, some sunbathing, some dancing, and some just enjoying time with friends.

The best part is … the puppies!

People from off campus come to the Great Lawn and bring their puppies with them and that just makes the day that much better.

It is such a beautiful representation of the community our school is … so diverse, but also so interconnected.

I love seeing all the different groups of friends out on the lawn, some intermingling, and just enjoying time away from studies to really take in our beautiful campus on a beautiful day.

Fingers crossed, this happens more often!

It’s also led me to be able to start venturing off campus, whether it be to the lion’s gate bridge or to Pelican’s sno-balls for a mid-day snow cone.

CNU is beautiful all the time, but feels more like home especially when the sun is out.

Each day, we as CNU students come in contact with so many people.

Students, roommates, friends, professors, dining hall staff, maintenance staff and custodial staff.

We often say hello to our friends and roommates, greet our professors upon entering, but do we really say “thank you” to those who look out for our safety, health, stomachs and campus?

The staff at CNU (including dining hall, maintenance and custodial) are the friendliest I’ve ever encountered.

They are always there early – before we are.

My Greek organization decided to write these staff members that usually go unnoticed thank-you notes. These notes are small and simple, but can make all the difference in how our CNU staff members perceive us. We should all show them that we are thankful for their hard work, long hours and exceptional attitudes.

This group of people has never failed to greet me with a smile, and they look after us!

They keep our buildings clean and safe. They keep our campus beautiful. They keep our bellies full.

Why wouldn’t we want to thank them?

Next time you’re walking around campus, challenge yourself to say hello and genuinely thank each of them for all they do for us students.

CNU is a special place, but it’s not just the campus that makes it special.

It’s the people.

Ah, snow.

It was exciting the first time it canceled school for the night, then the next day, then early the next morning. I got to go back to my childhood and sled on a nearby hill with other CNU students.

Then it came and gave us an early spring break. With the threat of the storm that would prevent students from safely going home, CNU made the decision to cancel school Thursday and Friday, allowing students an early spring break and the chance to go home early and safely before the storm hit.

I was in the library when they sent the text that school was canceled, and the library ERUPTED into laughs, screams and praise. It was hilarious.

So everyone went on their merry way – except me, the other RAs, the Einstein’s workers, some athletes, front desk assistants and other student workers.

I was a little sad, I’m not gonna lie. I wanted to go home and see my family and start my break early.

But, it ended up being so fun.

I got time to spend with my friends, to hang out on an almost empty campus, and had an excuse to eat out as much as possible. I got to play in the snow, to drink hot coffee at any time of the day and to watch unhealthy amounts of Netflix.

My early spring break was spent as more of a snow break – but I can’t complain.

So you’re in the library, studying. Or socializing.

You realize its almost 7 p.m., you haven’t eaten, so you start to make your way to the dining hall.

Will you take all of your stuff? Pack up from your cozy library cubby just to lug it all to the dining hall and then BACK to the library?

No, you go to CNU.

CNU has an unspoken honor code.

Well, of course we all sign the actual honor code, which this kind of works into.

But the unspoken CNU honor code is this: you can leave your stuff pretty much anywhere and pretty much rest peacefully knowing it will be there when you return.

I’ve had friends who have left wallets by accident, I’ve accidentally (and purposefully) left my phone or laptop on a table, and with no worries in the world. Or the infamous ID loss. Where you realize that if someone doesn’t turn it in, you’re going to have to pay for a new one. And then you can remind yourself you go to CNU where someone will turn it in.

Because CNU students have this sort of unspoken honor code, we don’t touch anything that isn’t ours. We look out for each other.

It’s a pretty routine habit for me now to not worry about leaving things, which kind of scares me when I think about entering the real world where everyone isn’t on this same honor code system.

But until then, about that dinner…

What an exciting two weeks for Greek life here at CNU!

Last week began and concluded sorority formal recruitment, and this week and next we have fraternity recruitment.

It is such an exciting opportunity on our campus to get involved with Greek life and see what positive things it has to offer aside from the stereotypes and myths we all have heard.

I luckily am able to speak about this from a personal (and fantastic) experience! I am a sister of Phi Mu here at CNU, and had the opportunity to serve as a recruitment counselor this past week. I worked with a group of about 30 women going through recruitment and did what I could to help them through the weekend and to help them realize which organization they would find their home in. During this time, I was completely disaffiliated from my organization in order to remain unbiased. While this was extremely rewarding on the potential new member side, it also proved to me how much my organization, and Greek life in general, has meant to me.

Greek life at CNU Is a whole different ball game than what we witness in the media. Greek life here has meaning, and places value in each and every member. These men and women are looking for an organization to better themselves, to challenge them and to make a difference on campus.

That in itself is enough of a reason to be excited about Greek life and how it is constantly growing and constantly being sought out by passionate students looking for a different kind of involvement. Working with women from all different organizations really proved to me how cohesive our Greek community is. While we all may have our different, organization-specific values and bonds, we all come together under the same roof to work towards the same goals of philanthropy, sisterhood or brotherhood, and campus involvement.

While they are definitely not the only ones on campus, members of our Greek community are student workers, volunteers, RAs, student directors, crew leaders, athletes – the list goes on and on. Being a part of such a special Greek community is not only a choice, but a privilege that should not be taken lightly.

We are here to be the change on how others perceive Greek life.

We are here to make a difference on our campus.

We are here to be better versions of ourselves.

So, welcome to Greek life to all the new members – may your experience be as positive and rewarding as mine!

Greek life can often get a bad reputation. Whether it be what you see in the media, someone who had a bad experience or your parents disapproving, it’s often hard to look past the bad rep that Greek life has.

While I will save all of the details on Greek life for future blog posts, I wanted to share a little about service.

When you sign up for Greek life, you sign up for service.

You take on the challenge of supporting your philanthropy; that can mean swinging in heat while giving out lemonade and popsicles for donations, living in cardboard boxes for a night to raise awareness about homelessness, or being in “jail” until you raise enough money to bail yourself out and raise funds for your cause.

All of these events above may sound strange to you, but they are ways different Greek organizations on our campus support their philanthropy, their community and their members.

I am extremely thankful for the opportunities for service I have been given through Greek life. They’re opportunities I may not have otherwise had, and opportunities that give me something to be passionate about during my time here.

Brotherhood or sisterhood means supporting your philanthropy, putting on events and sharing it with campus.

The coolest thing to me about all these service opportunities through Greek life is that it doesn’t just stop with your organization.

We as a Greek community have the ability and opportunity to serve others through our attendance, donations and support of other organization’s events.

Things like: buying a ticket to watch students perform stand-up comedy, lip sync to Miley Cyrus or get pied in the face support that service ideal.

Even indirectly, it all matters.

Ah, coffee.

If you asked me in elementary, middle or high school if I would ever be drinking coffee and actually enjoying it, I would have laughed. Coffee is such an adult drink, right?

Well, technically I am an adult now. As of three years ago. But, I can still pretend to not be.

Anyways, caffeine has become almost a necessity in the majority of college students’ diets and daily routines.

The white cup from Einstein’s has become an accessory, and I’ll admit I’ve jumped on the bandwagon.

When I was touring CNU, I thought it was so cool that they had their own coffee shop in the Trible Library.

I still think it’s cool.

Einstein’s is a place for friends, for meetings and for enjoying a cup of coffee or tea. It’s also for 1 a.m. when you’re finishing (or starting) a paper.

Look around campus and you’ll see the long-sleeved blue shirts and KNOW – hey, they’re a coffee hero.

Whether Diet Coke, other sodas, coffee or tea is your cup of joe, you can find it at Einstein’s and in the hands of the majority of students …

Over my two-and-a-half years here, I’ve discovered some ways to get the most out of my coffee.

Like: bringing your own re-usable mug or cup and getting some cents off (yes, it’s a real thing, and yes, it adds up).

Also, almost all of Einstein’s employees are students – which I think is pretty cool, and I salute them for their long hours and many lattes (especially during the fall with pumpkin spice lattes – which I’ve still never had *gasp*).

So, if you’re a college student at CNU, choose your fuel.

If sleep is it, I envy you.

If coffee is it, I’m in this fight to stay awake with you.

See you at Einstein’s!

Ah, registration.
One of the most dreaded times of the year.

The day where you wake up before the sun, sit up in bed and get ready to type in those class numbers when the Web page prompts you to do so.

The morning where your heart beats so fast as you watch the available class times drop, and the happiness you feel when it shows you’ve successfully enrolled in that PERFECT class you wanted.

The time when you get to actually evaluate what you want to study, and also get the freedom to decide when and with whom you’ll be taught.

Each semester, registration stresses me out a little less.

Maybe that’s just because I’m finally getting into my future a little more.

The only registration downfall I’ve hit is a long night class until 10:30 p.m. once a week. It was a great class but a horrible time.

I have (luckily) avoided taking any 8 a.m. classes, and I hope to continue that streak until graduation!

Anyways, when you start to move up the class ranks, it gets a little more stressful in other ways.

Instead of simply thinking about what classes will satisfy your liberal learning requirements, I now have to start thinking about what classes will actually benefit me in the long run.

I’ve never actually sat down and evaluated a course of action for the rest of my time here, but I also never knew how much I needed to do that. Looking at the types of classes I had never considered, such as English classes and business classes and seeing how they would benefit me in the future actually made me really excited.

I decided to take on a second minor in civic engagement, since one day I hope to work in the nonprofit field, hopefully internationally (fingers crossed). Looking at the course catalog and seeing all of the different classes offered opened my eyes to the various majors, minors and opportunities here that I had not been aware of before.

Happy registration season, and may the odds be ever in your favor!

(and if they’re not, there’s always overrides!)

Hello!

I thought I’d start my first post as a student blogger with a little introduction of myself. When someone asks me how I am (which is a lot, because I go to CNU, where it’s the norm to acknowledge people), I usually say good – then immediately follow it with, “but busy!”

However, being busy isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

If I’ve learned anything since being a student here, it’s that your time here is what you make it. I lucked out going to a school where it’s normal to be busy, because being busy means you’re involved and being involved means you’re making the most of your time here.

I am a junior this year and a sociology major with a psychology minor. People just interest me, what can I say? I am a resident assistant on East Campus, which means I live in one of the apartment buildings and serve as a resource for all the students living there. I am also a Greek life recruitment counselor. That means I’m involved in Greek life, but am currently disaffiliated so I can help women going through recruitment by providing a completely non-biased perspective. I have been disaffiliated since September and will be until after recruitment is over in January. I work in the Scheduling office and answer phones and emails and help people book rooms on campus. I am also now a student blogger – which I am super excited about!

All this being said, I don’t have a lot of free time on top of being a student. But I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I wouldn’t trade the friends I have made, the leadership positions I have gotten the opportunity to have, or the times up way too late because I procrastinated on yet another assignment because I was doing something else.

There really is something special about being at this school and really immersing yourself in all it has to offer. While some may look at a small school and see few opportunities, I look at it and see many. Opportunities to make a name for yourself, to branch out and to leave your comfort zone.

I could trade my involvement and positions for a life involving more Netflix, but until I find someone who sponsors me to lay in bed in fuzzy socks watching “New Girl,” I think I’ll stay just the way I am – good, but busy!