The New Student Convocation, held on Tuesday Aug 30 at 5 p.m. in the gymnasium, was a night full of inspirational speeches, laughs, food, and a message of positivity and encouragement.
The night began with students gathering in one of Bucks’ six houses, Arts & Communication, Business + Innovation, Health Sciences, Lang & Lit, Social & Behavioral Science, and STEM, where they received a free t-shirt with their house crest on the back. They then moved into the gym, greeted with thunderous applause from faculty and staff, and sat with their respective groups.
The speeches began with a welcome from Dr. Rodney Altemose, followed by a speech titled “Your Success Matters”, made by board of trustee’s member Mr. Thomas Jennings.
The next speech was given by Lateefat Adewale, the current Student Government Association President and Bucks student. Her speech was titled “Making the Most of Bucks”.
The two speeches that followed were, as Marcello Marin, 18, a Multimedia and Digital arts major from Chalfont said, “Very inspirational, they could have been better, but I enjoyed them.”
The first of the two was a speech by Ms. April Holmes, a Paralympic Gold Medalist and Bucks County resident, titled “Stop Limping through Life-Start Running”. Her speech was about overcoming adversity and it left us with the idea that we are, in her words, “too young, too cute, and too sexy.”
She made the crowd of new students engage with her as she gave her motivational testimony of her accident and later recovery. It was engaging and quite insightful into why it’s important to keep moving when faced with hard challenges and adversity because in Ms. Holmes’ words “There’s a train coming, so here’s the sound of the train.”
The final speech of the night was given by Dr. Felicia L. Ganther, the current President of Bucks County Community College. Her speech was about how new students can succeed at Bucks. Her main points were that you need to put in the work, put yourself first, manage your time wisely, and have fun. Her speech was filled with humor, and you could hear laughter emanating through the gymnasium as she spoke.
After the speeches there was a reception in the Linkz Pavilion. Finger food was provided, and students were encouraged to mingle and to get to know one another as they begin a new chapter in their lives. There was a photo booth set with props and a banner that students could sign.
All in all, the main part of the night was the speeches and as Ryan Roberts, 18, an Art major from Bensalem said, “It was actually pretty inspiring.” And it seems that the tone for the night was just that, inspiration and overcoming difficulties.
It is to be sure that each and every student present at the New Student Convocation had something to take away from the night. Especially their free gift of a pair of Bucks socks and a thing of bubbles.