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For 14 years I went to the same exact school with mainly the same 70 classmates since before kindergarten.

So, imagine my shock, when I found myself standing in DellPlain Hall’s sunny fifth floor lounge a few days before my freshman year at Syracuse University started, staring at my brand new floormates as we answered ice breakers with our residence advisor.

I realized that for the first time in my life I was actually a new student, same as everyone else. Feeling like the “new kid” sunk in more as one of the girls announced she was from the Bay Area, a fellow west-coaster, making her the first of my floormates to not be from some distant Eastern city.

That first day on campus, I questioned: How am I going to fit in? Will these people even like me? Do I deserve to be here? I felt lost. Mixed in with the excitement of making new friends and learning new material are other, near-mandatory personal tasks — dreading the daily outfit planning, first exams, walking into a classroom of unfamiliar faces and the pure anxiety that accompanies placing your feet somewhere you’ve never stepped before.

The transition to a new school at the malleable young ages of 18 to 20 can be isolating as it causes us to become distracted by social pressures and navigating our new home. We can lose sight of who we are and what fulfills us while in the throes of college.

For SU junior Joey Calaprico, commuting from campus back to his local home each night during his first year at SU made it hard to meet people because “everyone else stays at school at the end of the day,” initially causing Calaprico to bond with his math professor instead.

“That was just a great guy and someone who I really liked talking to,” he said, emphasizing the unique opportunity SU gives us to connect with inspiring people, even if they are not another student.

On campus, students are given endless opportunities to connect with peers that they should take advantage of. Rising SU senior Riley Fay, who transferred to SU in 2023, said that getting involved in CitrusTV was what helped her find a home at SU, despite not knowing a single person when she arrived. She says it was “intimidating and scary because it can feel like a competition, but I’ve worked with some of the nicest people on campus — they are experienced, but also want to help you with your career.” Fay also encourages female students to find community in the program Women in Communications at SU, an outlet for meeting potential friends in a professional oriented environment.

In the fall of my freshman year, there was an extra credit opportunity for my 100 person lecture elective on plate tectonics. Going from main campus to the Comstock Art Facility on South Campus for the “Lava Making Lab” seemed impossible at first as I realized I did not know which direction was south from main campus. There, I was one of about 10 students who watched real lava being poured out of a cauldron in the rainy parking lot where I went on to meet two influential people. I not only connected with a fellow student that I became close with as well as one of my most admirable professors to date, Mr. Jeffrey Karson, who even led me to discover my niche interest in the anthropology department. With his help, this field eventually became my minor and favorite topic of study.

The confusing mélange of emotions surrounding the beginning of the school year and the challenge of fitting in is exactly what helps young people like us to grow, to expand our perspectives and form the layers of skin we need to survive in the professional world as adults.

We need things to be difficult. Getting involved and integrated in our community is difficult as well as daunting, but it is the most integral aspect of the SU experience.

That is what I think the phrase “Bleed Orange” means at SU — we are encouraged by the unique opportunity of being away from home, of having a year or four years, by ourselves to figure out what each of us contributes to the world and lean into the spirit of the school. Syracuse provides the chance to feel like you matter, to feel like you are making a difference with your energy. The volunteering field trip I participated in called “The Big Event” made me feel like I mattered. I traveled downtown with Orange Seeds, Dean Konkol’s group of community volunteers, to clean up a church in a neglected part of Syracuse. Dean Konkol encouraged us to “leave the world better than we found it,” a phrase that resonated with me as I plucked trash from the church and food pantry grounds. “Being a part of Orange Seeds my freshman year helped create a sense of community on campus and made me feel like Syracuse was a home away from home,” said SU junior Paige Gleason, who aided my journey toward pouring my energy into SU as a whole instead of fearing it. Not only does getting to know your campus better help you feel more grounded, but in my opinion, the connections made by trying new things out on campus are the most fulfilling and represent the roots that weave you into the essence of SU and the spirit of the school.

Between the fun and connecting events at SU like a football game in the fall or an ice cream party on the quad, the moral of my story is to find chances on seemingly abstract and difficult campus opportunities, for you will be rewarded with a sense of purpose. Although meeting new and different students is important in building your base away from home, SU presents the perfect time to learn how to combine your interests with your work ethic and begin to bleed Orange.

Join that club, go to the first meeting of University Girl Magazine and be the only guy there, like I was. You must try something to prove it is not for you, but trying things is how you find people and places you meld with. “I promise you’ll find them here,” Fay assured.

James Hoagland is a third-year Magazine, News and Digital Journalism major. His column appears weekly. He can be reached at jhoaglan@syr.edu.

Published on August 22, 2024 at 9:20 am