Centre College
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Major: Politics
Minor: Spanish
Student Self Identifies as: African-American Heterosexual Female
Summary
I’m [have a leadership position] in the Law Society, I was in the Diversity Student Union, I did Best Buddies, and I’ve done Centre Ambassadors every year except this year. I do the Phonathon now and do fundraising for the school, I’m on the Student Advancement Board, and I’m a mentor in MAGIC.
Background
Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: African-American
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual
High School Experience: Public high school in Morehead, KY with about 300 students in the graduating class. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: No
Major: Politics
Minor: Spanish
Extracurricular Activities: I’m [have a leadership position] in the Law Society, I was in the Diversity Student Union, I did Best Buddies, and I’ve done Centre Ambassadors every year except this year. I do the Phonathon now and do fundraising for the school, I’m on the Student Advancement Board, and I’m a mentor in MAGIC.
Have any of your extracurricular activities had a particularly big impact on your experience?
Centre Ambassadors did because I got to learn a lot more about the college and that prompted me to do the Phonathon as well. I really enjoyed getting to meet prospective students and talking to them. It was every week, so I had an opportunity each week to learn about and represent the college. Being part of the Diversity Student Union helped make connections on campus, especially within minority groups on campus. MAGIC was impactful for me as a Black woman because I was able to make connections in Danville and mentor young women who are growing up in similar situations to mine in high school. Best Buddies has been meaningful to be part of. Generally, clubs at Centre that allow you to work with people in the Danville community have really shaped my collegiate experience.
Academic Experience
Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
For Politics, it’s a lot of reading and writing. Politics and International Studies have a lot of classes that overlap. It’s cool to be taking a course on domestic politics while also taking a course on international relations and reading about both the U.S. and the rest of the world. When I’m writing papers, I see things from both a domestic and global perspective. There are presentations, but no labs.
Is there anything you feel that your major’s department does especially well or poorly?
The International Studies department is stellar. I’ve loved all the classes I’ve taken. The Politics department is good, but sometimes the classroom environment isn’t as exciting and can feel too domestically focused.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
It’s a little bit of both. The faculty tries to make assignments collaborative to a certain degree to practice that skill. It’s generally a pretty competitive atmosphere because everyone is so goal-oriented and driven. A majority of the students have a great work ethic, so sometimes it can get a little competitive. I think that the level of competition is healthy in the classroom. From my personal experience, being in a classroom with people who are competitive and who will work hard and try to do their best has motivated me to do as well. We feed off each other in the classroom.
Do you feel that people are open to multiple schools of thought in the classroom?
It’s something people have been trying to actively work on, especially in light of the 2016 election. Because it’s so polarized, now there’s an emphasis on trying to be more open-minded. I don’t think there’s a problem with open-mindedness toward other schools of thought, but it’s something the school is actively trying to work on more in the classroom environment.
Why did you choose your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I was always sure of my major going in. I knew going into college I’d likely want to peruse law so I was always generally interested in politics. Now, seeing the different course requirements I’m very happy with my major. I’ve gotten a lot out of it, but if I could go back I’d potentially consider switching to International Studies.
Reasons to Attend
1) The size of the school allows you to make friends and really close relationships with the faculty. I consider some of the faculty my best confidants and advisors that I’ve made relationships with.
2) Sometimes it’s tough how academically rigorous it is, but I’m going to graduate in 2020 feeling like I go the most out of my education and that I’m well equipped to succeed in any field.
3) The study abroad program is incredible. Not only the number of places they offer where students to go and travel, but how well connected the faculty is to a lot of places. When I went abroad, my course director was from the country and had connections. The students had a more personalized experience because of that.
4) Greek life rushes in the spring, which is really nice. It’s something that can impact a student’s experience, so having the time in the fall to get to know people before you commit to something was a bonus.
5) Because it’s a liberal arts education and it’s taken very seriously, I not only feel like I have a depth of knowledge, but I have a breadth of knowledge.
6) The campus itself is so available. I’ve recently made appointments with the dean about the different concerns I have.
7) Centre is an expensive school but they work hard to ensure people can go. They have a big scholarship program and the majority of students are on some sort of financial aid of some kind. [90% of students receive some kind of financial aid.]
Reasons Not to Attend
1) For some people, a small school is not ideal. If that’s not what you’re looking for Centre won’t be conducive to what you want. [Centre has about 1,500 undergraduates.]
Around Campus
Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: Nevin Hall with one roommate
Sophomore: Cooper and Ganfield Hall with one roommate
Junior: I studied abroad in the fall, then lived in my sorority house
Senior: Brockman Commons
How was transitioning from Morehead to Danville, Kentucky?
It wasn’t really a move for me. They are only two hours apart by car. The towns are fairly similar and I’ve been to Danville and on Centre’s campus multiple times before. I had a feel for the area and had friends there.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I’ve pretty much always felt the same. I will note that the campus is such a part of the Danville community that there are incidences where people from Danville will come onto campus and start a ruckus late at night. Also, with Centre’s campus being so integral to Danville’s community, it’s often been a positive thing again.
Social Opportunities
What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
In Danville, there isn’t that much. At Centre, the fraternities will have parties or sometimes people in the Brockman apartments will invite a few people over to hang out. I personally used to like going to the fraternity houses, but not anymore now that it’s mainly the younger classes that do that. I like hanging out in my Brockman or another person’s Brockman and just hang out.
What have been some of your favorite times at Centre?
Every year we have Carnival, where there’s a musical guest that comes to the college. That whole day has things set up for students to do like bouncy houses. One year I think there was a soap bubble pit. They’ll have food and different vendors out. It’s just a fun time and it’s open to the entire student body. Every week we have Campus Center After Dark, so there’s always something going on that the student activities council sets up for students like games, karaoke, and raffles. During finals week in the fall all the faculty comes around the library and around campus and sing carols. We also have a late-night breakfast during finals in the cafeteria. During the day, the Humane Society may bring in puppies or kittens so you can come by the gym and play with them to destress.
How happy are you with the weekend activities or nightlife at your school? Is there anything you would change if you could?
I wish there were more things to do in Danville over the weekend, but on Centre’s campus, I’m fine with the options. Some people drive to Lexington or Louisville for a more fun weekend experience, but for me, I’m fine how it’s set up on Centre’s campus.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
I’m in a scholarship program on campus so I got here a week early and we went on a backpacking trip before school. It was a three-day trip with nine other students. Over the course of that, we got really close and a lot of my friends to this day are from that trip. A lot of my other closest friends in my group were their roommates. I also made friends going abroad and with people who choose the same major and ended up in a lot of my classes. Also, Centre is so small that everyone knows everyone essentially. It’s really easy to make friends.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Centre?
How everyone knows everyone is a defining characteristic of the social scene. It’s really community-based, friendly, and open. I can’t go anywhere and not know someone. Sometimes that’s a good thing, and sometimes it can feel like there’s no time for myself. When I’m walking to class and just trying to clear my head, I’ll see ten people I know on the walk that want to have small talk.
To what extent do people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
There’s a good amount of interaction between groups of different races and sexual orientations. There are certainly identifiable communities of said groups. Even though there’s no problem with people mixing all together, that doesn’t take away from the fact that a lot of minority students have their own set groups that they align with. Campus is a place for people of certain groups to exist openly with one another. [The undergraduate population is 72% White, 5% Black, 7% Hispanic, and 5% Asian.]
How would you describe the Black community on campus? How strong is it?
Every year it has grown from my perspective. I think the presence on campus is strong and we have done a good job of identifying ourselves and speaking for what we want. There was a sit-in on Centre’s campus organized largely by Black students. That was a defining moment for establishing ourselves on campus. It was positive and constructive. We have a really strong Black community, but there can always be more that supports Black students on Centre’s campus. I certainly think efforts are being made.
To what extent do people in Greek life and not in Greek life mix socially?
I think there’s a great deal of mixture socially. Typically, after everyone rushes for the first time, people are a little more split because people are going through initiation and settling into their new Greek homes and people get wrapped up in that. Greek affiliation doesn’t create too much stratification. It’s about a 50/50 split for Greek and non-Greek students on campus. There’s a lot of people both involved and not involved, and because everyone knows everyone on campus people mix anyway. Something I really appreciate about Centre is we do rush in the spring, so people have the fall semester to get to know each other without any Greek affiliation.
Careers
Has the alumni network helped you find internships or jobs?
I’ve spoken to a couple of alumni that I was friends with about potential opportunities I’m applying to, and informally keeping in touch with what people are doing. I haven’t formally tried to make connections using the alumni network.
What have you used the career office for? How helpful have they been?
It has been really helpful. I’ve gone to them to talk about my resume and they’ve helped me polish that. The structure I had and the conception of what it’s supposed to include and look like was so incorrect. Their office has really helped me fix that and allowed me to submit resumes I feel comfortable about. In the same building, they have the Office for Global Citizenship so it’s been nice to talk about going abroad.
Have you learned any computer programs or computer languages that will be helpful professionally?
I was in a political analysis class last year and we had to use Excel for that to conduct our research projects and use Excel to collect and organize our data. We created a data-based presentation and generally got more familiar with Excel which was helpful because it’s something I never thought I’d have access to as a Politics major.