What may have seemed like the shortest summer of them all has come to a close, and Piedmont University’s campus is filled with students from all over the globe for yet another school year.
In May, all we could talk about was how great it was going to be to go back to our hometowns with big plans of traveling, working and everything in between. Summer could not have come any quicker.
Quickly it came and went.
It is wild how just a few short months later, all of the excitement of relaxing at home has worn off. Maybe some students are happy to be back, while others may feel as if they are walking uphill both ways all over campus. Granted, most of campus probably is uphill both ways.
At this point, students are a few weeks into their courses, already swamped with Canvas assignments and stressing over daily quizzes that feel oh-so unnecessary. As the assignments pile and due dates loom ahead, students can’t help but feel the demands of college life.
“Learn how to manage your time,” professors advise.
“Make sure you have your priorities straight,” parents remind.
Great. Something else that I am going to procrastinate. How can I even procrastinate learning time management skills? When everything feels like a priority, how do I know where to start?
College is hard. No matter if you are studying athletic training, forensic science, communications, biology, nursing, business or education. No matter if you are an athlete, the president of a club, in a sorority, working an outside job or as a resident’s assistant. No matter if you are from Cornelia or California, college isn’t easy.
Everyone at Piedmont comes from different backgrounds and is guaranteed to have a different college experience than the person next to them. Sure, we will all experience similar moments, like the feeling when the dining hall finally has nachos or when your professor cancels class, but even the closest of roommates won’t have the same memories at Piedmont.
Even the smallest moment can make an impact on a student’s experience here.
How can I help the boy sitting next to me in my 8 a.m. English class get an A on his paper? How can I make the new freshmen feel welcome in the cafeteria?
Many of us have these thoughts from time to time, as we recall our first days, not to mention our first failing grades as a Piedmont student. Most of all, we remember the feeling of a small Division III school in Georgia that keeps us coming back, year after year.
Lions, welcome back to campus. Welcome back to a little town in northeast Georgia that we call home when texting our friends and family that we made it back to our dorm safely, even if it isn’t what we’ve called home our whole lives. Welcome back to the university where the professors are invested in you, and you are invested in those around you.
We’re happy to see all of you, and we cannot wait to share your stories this year.
Best of luck,
The Roar 2024-25 Editors-in-Chief.
