Month: October 2020

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The Importance of Faith

Faith is something that most assume when coming to Grove City College is all around you in everything you see and do. Now, faith is a deeply integrated part of the Grove City community. But with that said, it is easy to let your personal faith slip because you assume with chapel and Bible studies that you are covered. As a senior, I can personally attest to the fact that your faith and relationship with Christ can easily fall to the back burner if you are not actively and daily pursuing The Lord. There have been times when I got to the end of a semester and realized I had not spent a single day with Jesus in quiet time or prayer. This affected the health of my spiritual, emotional, and physical life in ways you cannot imagine.

I have found that the only thing that brings me peace when I am stressed, overwhelmed, or anxious is spending time with Jesus every single day. As a senior this year, I took a look back on the last three years of my college career and how I felt when I was spending consistent time in the word versus when I was not. I do not mean to say this in a condemning way–as if you are a bad person if you do not spend time with Jesus every day. NO. Not at all. I am saying that, in my opinion, if you want a beautiful, healthy, life-fulfilling experience during your time at Grove City College, fix your mind on Jesus and His word as much as possible.

I have found that starting my day by reading one or two chapters of the Bible and writing out a prayer for my day has been the best way to start said day. With that being said, you ultimately have to do what is right for you. And your time with Jesus can look different every day, it does not have to be the same thing over and over again. Spending time with Jesus is spending time with Jesus.

As I write this post, I pray that your time at the College is full of joy, beauty, community, and faith. Faith in the unseen. Faith in the God who created you and has walked the path before you. The God who has won all of your battles, so you do not have to. When you come to college, keep your faith for He is with you.

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How a Student Athlete Manages

Gretchen Elsey, a senior Exercise Science major from Pulaski, PA, is a dual sport athlete here at Grove City College. She is a shooting guard for the women’s basketball team, along with competing in the high jump for the track and field team.

As Grove City College is an academically challenging school, I asked her how she balances her school work while being a collegiate athlete. She responded, “The best way for me to balance my work is by working ahead as best I can. I also look ahead in all my syllabi in the beginning of the week, so I have an idea of what needs to be done. Also, playing a sport in general really helps me prioritize not only my time, but what I do outside of my schoolwork. It really is about being diligent in your work. If you are diligent and finish your work on time, then you will be able to do other things.”

Gretchen also mentioned that the basketball team offers a study table on Monday nights. This is required for freshmen players to attend, and lasts for two and a half hours. “Some upperclassmen go to study table because while we get our work done, it is a good time to bond with the freshmen,” she said. Even though I do not play a sport here on campus myself, I would agree with Gretchen that the best way to stay on top of your studies is by setting enough time aside to accomplish what you can, along with working ahead in any way possible.

I also asked Gretchen if she feels like she missed out on some college experiences since she plays two sports. She responded, “I do miss out on some social aspects in a sense. Like if some of my friends are meeting in the Student Union, or if people are going off campus to hang out for a little bit. But other than that, not really because all my friends are on the basketball team, so I see them every day and during the season we spend an absurd amount of time together.” Gretchen also told me that her closest friends have come from the basketball team: “Without basketball I do not know if I would’ve met them. They are some of my closest friends and for sure will be there for me even after college.” Although it can be super fun to play sports at the collegiate level, you can give up most of your weekends to games, long tournaments, or practices.

To conclude the interview, I asked if there is any advice she would give to incoming freshmen and students interested in playing sports. Gretchen said, “I would just say why not? You have four years of school so might as well spend some of that time playing a sport you love. You also have a great opportunity to meet a lot of new people, so I definitely think it is worth it.”

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Things I Wish I Knew as a Freshman: Part 2

Welcome to part 2 of the “Things I Wish I Knew as a Freshman” series! If you have not read the first post, be sure to check it out for more tips. Here, I will be focusing on two more pieces of information I wish I knew as a freshman.

  1. Take time in your day, each day, to do something for you. Do not be worried about what anyone else thinks. If it is relaxing to you, do it.
  • I came into college worried about what others would think of me. I was also stressed out of my mind freshman year, so I truly cherished the moments I took for myself to relax. Even if it is just once a week if you feel too busy, take a break. Over the years, I have found that the things that relax me are going home on the weekends to visit my family, napping, watching New Girl on Netflix, or listening to music. Now, many people gave me a hard time about going home so often to see my family and for a while that really bothered me. But as I continued my time at the College, I learned that going home on the weekends brings me extreme peace, so I am going to continue to do so regardless of what people think. And I did that because I needed to recoup and be ready for the week to come. I wanted to share this tip with you, prospective student, because I want you to feel the freedom to do whatever you need to do to relax as you begin your college career.
  1. Be present. You never know when your time at the College will come to an end.
  • As a senior at the College, I have a newfound appreciation for being present during your time at Grove City. I know you will hear this from a ton of different people, but you will blink and be a senior before you know it. Or, you could be sent home from school due to a global pandemic and lose an entire semester. But that is a different story. That being said, please take it from me, a person who was not fully present the first couple years of my college career, wishing to go home sometimes, being so excited for Christmas break, etc. Be present. You only have four years to live with your closest friends and make beautiful and fun memories. Do not miss it.
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Things I Wish I Knew as a Freshman: Part 1

Are you or have you ever been nervous about going to college? Me too. And so has pretty much every other person to ever attend college. With that being said, here are some pieces of advice to hopefully ease some of your nerves.

  1. You WILL succeed in your classes if you put in the effort. They are not as impossible as they seem. You learned how to study and work in high school, you will be fine.
  • One of the things I was most nervous about when coming to college was the workload and the classes. I always heard that college was significantly more difficult than high school and that I would get a rude awakening. While Grove City has rigorous academics, the classes and workload are doable. I was so scared coming to college thinking that I would not have a social life or that I would not do well academically. Let me reassure you as a senior at the College, if you put in the work you will figure out how to best study for you and get the work done without working yourself crazy. You CAN do it!
  1. The professors are here to help you, not to scare you or fail you.
  • In high school, I remember my teachers telling me that my college professors would not be lenient with me (i.e. no late homework, schedule was hard set, no extra credit, no conversations when extenuating circumstances arose, etc.). This terrified me for college. But I can assure you that I have not had a single professor at Grove City who has not worked with me when conflicts arose for either class or an assignment. Every professor I have had at the College has always been the most understanding when I have reasonable excuses or a difficult situation that requires an extension or simply the professor to work with me individually.
  1. It is okay not to find your lifelong best friends your freshman year. You will find close friends.
  • When I first moved into my freshman dorm, there was this weird underlying pressure to find your best friends the moment you got to school. It was like if you did not find your best friends within the first month of school you were somehow never going to find them. I am proof that this notion is simply not true. Yes, for some, freshman friends or roommates do become the best of friends. And that is awesome! However, I did not find my closest friends or friend circle freshman year. I found it sophomore year with my roommate who I have now lived with for three out of the four years I have been at Grove City. Also, I found my group of close friends sophomore year when I joined a sorority on campus. My point is, it is okay if you do not end up being best friends with your freshman year roommate. You will find your group and you will find your close friends.
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English Major Internship Spotlight: Laura Locher

Internships are a stressful topic for some and a reminiscent memory for others. I completely understand both sides of this coin. My name is Laura Locher and I completed two internships over the course of my time at Grove City College. Both internships were in New York City. The first was with an independent publishing company called Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group and the second was with a healthcare marketing ad agency company called FCB Health. Today, I want to focus on my most recent experience with FCB Health.

FCB Health Experience (remote from June 2020-August 2020):

My most recent internship was with FCB Health, NY. I was the single editorial intern for the network’s NYC office. I spent the summer learning the lingo, various editing software systems, the history of the company, and the editorial process FCB uses. Let me describe the editorial process FCB Health enacted. With what I am legally allowed to share, being that the network is a healthcare company, the editorial process is a multi-level system that includes factors like cold reads, fact checks, proofreads, etc. The editorial process is much more in-depth than that and I would love to talk to anyone who is interested in a similar field!

I loved my internship experience with FCB so much. If I could some it up in a sentence I would say this, it’s simple: the people, the culture and atmosphere, and the work. I cannot begin to explain how much I loved everyone I worked with last summer. Whether they were people from various departments or my fellow interns, everyone was phenomenal. The company culture is exactly what I am looking for – accepting, encouraging, team-oriented, driven. And finally, the work I did this summer piqued my interest in something I never pictured myself working in – healthcare. Overall, my experience with FCB Health was incredible and I have recently accepted a freelance editor position with the company beginning September 1, 2020.

One final highlight from my internship was winning the intern pitch project challenge! All 53 summer interns at FCB were split into five teams and tasked with creating a pitch for a brand the company works with. My team ended up winning the pitch and the group’s ideas are actually going to be used in an upcoming campaign! My advice to students seeking similar internships is this, apply everywhere and anywhere even if you think you don’t have a chance of landing the internship. You have no idea what door God will open for you. Look at me, I applied to FCB Health on a whim randomly on LinkedIn, got the email saying they want to start the interview process, got the internship, and now have a job with the company. You never know.

 

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My Study Abroad Experience

One of the main motivations for me to study abroad was my mom, who moved to the United States from Italy when she was just 12 years old! As I was growing up, she would always tell my and my siblings amazing stories about her time living there and how different it was than living in America. What my mom told me, combined with how much my brother loved his study abroad experience, I knew this was something I had to do and experience for myself.

Even though I was confident that I would be able to adjust to Italian life without any hiccups, I did feel a little out of place and out of my comfort zone upon arrival. Adjusting to the culture and the Italian way of living definitely took some time. In Italy, people are a lot more relaxed. Especially in heart of Florence where we all were located, everyone walks so there is not much traffic. This means that everyone is trying to go where they need to be, yet they do not stress about it. One thing I learned very quickly is that people take their time when walking. This is very different from the American way, where people are hustling and bustling, trying to get where they need to be as soon as possible. Among this, there were many things I had yet to learn. This was the first time I lived on my own, which meant that I had to cook, clean, and shop for myself. I also had to be aware of my roommates’ needs as they also were trying to cook, clean and shop for themselves as well. This meant I had to communicate well and be sensitive to their needs. The experience not only taught me how to take care of myself, but also how to budget my money since I wanted to see much of Europe. Through this experience, I learned a lot about myself and how to handle certain situations, in addition to learning more about the world and other cultures.

I would say one of the best parts about studying abroad was the ability to visit multiple countries with some of my best friends. Since we did not have class on Fridays, we had the opportunity to visit different places around Europe since travel was so cheap! We would try to plan our trips at least a week and a half in advance, as this is when flights would be at their cheapest without having to plan months in advance. My last class ended at 2 p.m. on Thursday afternoons, so we would pack the night before because the adventure would begin as soon as my class ended! We booked flights out of Pisa, which is about an hour train ride west of Florence. The Pisa airport is bigger than the one in Florence, meaning flights were a lot cheaper.

Studying abroad was hands down the highlight of my college career! I would highly recommend that everyone at least looks into studying abroad to determine if it is possible. Through study abroad programs, you experience so many things outside of Grove City College which you may never have the opportunity to do again. Everyone says they like a good adventure–so why not have the adventure of a lifetime! If you are interested in studying abroad, reach out to the Office of Global Programs to learn more!

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A Quick Glimpse into the Study Abroad Process

On August 25, 2019, a new adventure began for me. I left the Pittsburgh airport to study abroad in Florence, Italy for the fall semester, along with four other Grove City students. Since I have an older brother who studied abroad in Florence in 2015, I knew that it was something I wanted to do during my time here at Grove City College. As my mother is Italian, I had visited Italy and other European countries in the past. I saw studying abroad to be a three-month-long vacation with college friends, getting to travel Europe on my own.

The application process was not too difficult, just taking a lot of time, energy, and especially patience. The Office of Global Programs here on campus suggested that I break it up into two parts. First, I chose to apply through Grove City. At this point, you decide where you want to study, which program to select (if there are any that interest you), and which classes will transfer credits to your major. Since my brother did this years before, I already knew my plan. I was looking to live in Florence and direct enroll into a university there called Lorenzo de’ Medici. This was the cheapest and most hassle-free option I could find that Grove City offered, on top of it being the exact plan my brother used.

Finding classes that offered transferable credit to Grove City College took time. I needed to request a class catalog from Lorenzo de’ Medici, find the class that interested me, download and print the syllabus, and, finally, have it approved by the head of the Business Department (as I am a Business major). I did this for all the classes I took in Florence, because the College makes sure that any classes taken abroad fulfill on-campus requirements. After getting my classes signed off, I had to start the application process directly with Lorenzo de’ Medici. This process included filling out an over-five-page application, sending in college transcripts with my past grades and GPA, and–the hardest part–scheduling an appointment with the Italian consulate in Pittsburgh to fill out yet another application to obtain my student Visa. This entire process took the span of a few months during the spring semester of 2019, and I did not end up finding out that I had been accepted until mid-July! All in all, the process was not too difficult and can be easily done if broken into steps. Check out my next blog post to hear about some experiences and why you should consider studying abroad through Grove City College!