Saturday, September 24, 2011

ONU Pride

Someone once told me that Ohio Northern is a very good school, but the pride is lacking. You hear OSU students boast about being a Buckeye, but have you heard people bragging about being a Polar Bear?! I was a little taken back by the statement, but then again I had really never heard of an overjoyed population of Polar Bear alumni.  Thankfully, this opinion was changed quickly when I went to Homecoming events my freshman year when I actually got to meet alumni who were truly in love with Northern.

My absolute favorite event at Ohio Northern is Homecoming and the entire weekend in general. There is just so much excitement in the air with the football game, parade, carnival rides, and so much more. To me, this weekend is to celebrate who we are as an ONU community and those who have made the university what it is today.  

One of the best things about Homecoming is meeting the alumni. They have so much to offer and advice to give that not taking advantage of their time here would be silly. You could meet people in your profession and find internship opportunities. If the connection between you and the alumni is strong, there could be a potential for utilizing them as a resource for when the time comes to find a grown-up job as well. The networking possibilities are endless on event days like Homecoming. 

What I've come to learn as I approach my third Homecoming experience are the types of alumni that come back have a lot in common with each other. Yes, they all have various careers and live everywhere, but the similarity is they were all very active on campus. There are those rare few who only did school work (which is okay because that is what we are here for), but for the most part they had given a lot of their time to making the campus better. Being active and contributing so much of their undergraduate time to the university and its organizations seemed to give them motivation to come back and help out current undergraduates as well as check out how their Alma mater is doing. 

Last, it is also really nice to know that others have made it through schooling here. Personally, graduation seems a little far off because of how tough some of the classes can be, but seeing others who have made it from where I am to their professional and successful careers. All in all ONU pride is prevalent and can be seen at any alumni event. The best thing to do is get out during these events and socialize because you’ll never know what can come out of a simple conversation. See you all at Homecoming on October 1st J ! Peace. Love. ONU!

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