When I got to The University of Alabama in the fall of 2024, I thought that I would find my people, and by the spring, I’d know faces all around campus. It seemed like a basic expectation. Forty thousand students is a lot of people, but I would make friendships and familiarity would become the norm. This was the story told by my parents and grandparents, as well as other adults in my life before college.
Unfortunately, this was not my story, and I do not believe it is the story for a large number of freshmen students on campus. Outside of Alabama’s Greek life, which accounts for only around one-third of UA’s student body, seeing familiar faces is not an easy task. Even today, I can walk across the Quad during a class change in my third year and not see a single face I know.
That may be discouraging to you. It certainly was for me at first.
It can absolutely feel lonely. In theory, I have done the “right” things to prevent this. I am a part of a campus ministry, involved at a local church and have played intramural sports. I attend a lot of Alabama sporting events, and my major, minor and graduate degrees are in three completely different areas.
The problem at the end of the day is ...