Last Semester of My College Career

by Keenan L., Panther Blogger

It feels like time has flown by!  I can't believe that we are halfway through the spring semester. Over the past six weeks, I have had a chance to attend many men's and women's basketball games and helped coordinate many fun Resident Assistant programs.

For the month of February, we put on a Valentine's Day program. The program was called "Just Give Me a Kiss."  At the program, residents were able to send an anonymous card with a nice message to a friend with candy attached. The program was such a great success, and we had over 50 residents send cards to friends. It really put everyone on campus in a good mood!

My friend Quinton and me before a
basketball game!

I have had a lot of fun going to the basketball games!  Both teams are amazing to watch and it's great to see all the spirit from the students on campus!

Two weeks ago, I was able to be a panelist on the Student Panel at an Admissions Open House event.  I had an amazing time, and it was a great experience!  I loved talking to many of the perspective students and being able to share my experiences from Ferrum with them!

My best friend Melissa & me
before a Residence Life program

Currently, I am on spring break with my best friends!  We are all spending spring break at Massanutten Ski Resort!  I love spending time with my friends and it will be something that I will miss once I graduate in May.  While on spring break, we went to a frozen yogurt shop and showed our Ferrum love by writing on their white board and taking a picture with it!

The note we left at Sweet Bee in Harrisonburg, VA

In the Life of a Resident Assistant

by Keenan L., Panther Blogger

This past week has been very busy but productive. I have been preparing for VAUCHO, which is the annual Virginia RA conference. I am really excited because I did not get to go to the conference last year, so it is my first time ever! This year, the conference will be held at Virginia Tech, and it will be my first time on that campus.

At VAUCHO, all schools from around Virginia send people from Residence Life and Housing to the conference to represent their school, and we will compete in numerous spirit competitions. I bet this will be one of the best experiences I have been able to take since being in Residence Life.

This month as a Resident Assistant in Bassett Hall, we had a program about health awareness. One of the main health topics that we covered was breast cancer. To the residents who stopped at our tables in the lobby, we passed out cupcakes and bags filled with information about health; residents wrote notes of encouragement to patients or survivors. We had a great turnout. As RA staff in Bassett, we took the time to decorate bras for Breast Cancer Awareness. We took the bras and decorated the tables with them. We will donate the bras to Roanoke Oncology for office decorations.

Hope everyone is having a GREAT week and staying safe during Hurricane Sandy!

My Last Homecoming as a Student

by Keenan L., Panther Blogger

Hello, everyone!!

This past weekend here at Ferrum was our Homecoming! It was such an amazing weekend for me to hang out with all my friends who are seniors and also seeing friends who have graduated within the last few years. Being a part of Student Government Association (SGA) allowed me to be hands-on with some of the events that were going on around campus! I think it was great to hang out with my other SGA members and decorate the campus for our homecoming.

This year’s theme for homecoming was “A Haunted Homecoming.” Everyone around campus got the into the Halloween spirit with the all the homecoming activities.

My most memorable part of homecoming this year was attending the football game with my friends, and a few new friends I met who attend Virginia Wesleyan College. Jasmine, Brittany, Katie, and Deven are four of the nicest girls that I have ever met, and they were very interested in student life at Ferrum College. Overall, our conversations comparing schools were GREAT, and I have decided that a few friends from Ferrum and I will visit Virginia Wesleyan to hangout with them and learn the way of life at their school. Being a senior Resident Assistant (RA) allowed me to have one night off from duty and I really got to enjoy my last homecoming as a student of Ferrum College.

Homecoming is one of the greatest moments in your life as a college student, and I encourage everyone to take advantage of it! Hope everyone enjoyed his or her weekend!

Greetings from a New Panther Blogger!

by Keenan L., Panther Blogger

Hello! My name is Keenan, and I am currently a senior here at Ferrum College. I am originally from Hagerstown, Maryland and graduated from North Hagerstown High School. I am an only child on my mother's side of the family and the youngest of 7 on my father's side. I am extremely close to my mother, and she is one of the most inspirational people in my life. My short-term goal is to graduate from college, and my long-term goal is ultimately to teach in an elementary school either in Maryland or Virginia.

I found out about Ferrum through a phone call during my senior year in high school. Ferrum contacted me about 3 times a month and also sent me a birthday card when I turned 18. When I received the birthday card, I was super excited because I never had colleges or universities send me something so personal, which showed me that Ferrum cares about their students. Ferrum became my first choice of schools because everyone I talked to was super nice and very caring. I applied to Ferrum and got accepted! After getting accepted, I met one of the nicest people who helped me get through the process of getting all the important paperwork completed and turned in on time. I owe a lot of my freshman year accomplishments to Mr. Jason Byrd, who helped me a lot. Without him, I think I would have been lost!

I love the culture and atmosphere around Ferrum. Coming from a place about the size of Roanoke, Ferrum was a little different for me. I love the people around the area. Everyone is very nice and are ready to help you whenever you need it. Ferrum also has a very pretty campus. I love the beginning of fall around the campus because it is just BEAUTIFUL!  I would definitely recommend Ferrum to other students because it is one of the best places you will ever go. My favorite memory here at Ferrum has been the past Homecomings. My friends and I have had the best time at the sporting events that have been offered on campus.

Last year's Homecoming (2011) - can't wait until this year's!

Ferrum has been very beneficial in preparing me for the future. I have been lucky to be able to be a part of the wonderful education department. The education program has helped me learn the fundamentals of being a teacher! Currently, on campus, I am a Resident Assistant in Bassett Hall, the treasurer for Student Government Association, and a member of Resident Hall Association (RHA).

I am looking forward to talking to everyone!  Feel free to contact me.  :)