As first-year students come into the new school year, there are a lot of different things that students have to get acquainted with in new ways that they are not used to. With the help of Averett Connection Leaders, first-year students are able to explore campus and what all Averett University has to offer including clubs, organizations, and other activities that may be going on around campus during that time. 

“It was a really fun and exciting experience,” Morgan Dearing, Assistant Director of Student Involvement, said. “It was nice to get to know the incoming freshman and transfer students that came into Averett and help guide them into their first year at Averett.” 

Dearing was a Connection Leader for three years while she was at Averett.

Connection Leaders also host Connection week, which is done every year at the beginning of the school year as a way to welcome new students to the campus. Being a part of Student Engagement, Connection Leaders play a vital role in retention as they are a way to help bridge the gap for newly arrived students. 

Through being a connection leader, you are around a lot of people and you get to interact and make friends with not only the students coming in but other students who are connection leaders as well. A lot of students used being a connection leader as a way to branch off into other parts of Averett Student Life, like Residence Life, and other clubs and organizations. 

“We had a really strong bond which made us a really strong team,” Dearing said. 

“The Connection Leaders helped me learn a lot about Averett,” Kori Chavis, a sophomore at Averett, said. “ Most of what I saw from them was pretty cool.” 

Connection Leaders not only direct students into having a successful career at Averett, they are also building strong characteristics amongst themselves of leadership, responsibility, and compassion for others. If you would like to become a Connection Leader, you can simply e-mail @[email protected], and you will also go through an interview process as well.