Scarlett speaks: How do we succeed through transformation?

Transformation and change are surrounding us this semester at the University of St.Francis (USF). First-year students are taking their first steps into adulthood, staff and faculty are transitioning into new positions with new responsibilities and changes are being made to the physical parts of campus. 

We are seeing a transition at USF unlike anything we have experienced before. 

Last year was the hard kind of transition, the kind that we didn’t quite understand. While we knew changes were being made, the impact surrounding them felt suffocating at times. Programs were being cut, staff and faculty were let go, club budgets were cut and students were left feeling the full effects while receiving minimal support. 

The most fascinating aspect of this, though, was how students came together to support each other. We were all facing the same transitions and the fear of the unknown to come, nevertheless, we all came together. I talk about the student community at USF frequently, and I truly believe that our community is unlike any other campus in the world. Our students are genuinely what make the most impact at USF. Seeing everyone come together and support each other last year further proved that point. As we start fresh with a new school year, that community we created last year continues to prosper. 

I spoke to many students last year that I otherwise probably would not have connected with. We all were taking time to vent after Student Government Association (SGA) meetings, brainstorm ideas for our various places of involvement and just overall trying to work together. By taking the time to help each other, we unknowingly shifted the way students were interacting. 

We strengthened our relationships because we had a common hate. 

Hate is a very powerful word, and I will acknowledge that. But I am also a firm believer that you make stronger friendships with people who share the same dislikes rather than those you share interests with. There is something so personal about having a shared hatred that really pulls people together. We were all in a situation together that we hated, but we had to figure out how to push through it and make it better for ourselves. 

Thus comes the reformed student community I see this fall. When the university transformed, so did the students; we came together as a united force and continue to hold this strengthened community together.

This is something that I hope students are proud of because our morale would not have survived without it. We transformed a less-than-desirable situation into something we could be halfway proud of. I am thankful for the community we have transformed, and I am thankful that the USF students continue to be the community we transformed last year. Stick together, work together and continue to be a united force throughout these transformations. We would not have USF without the students here.