• Don't be afraid to go to your professor office hours. These office hours that they have can be helpful for you even if it is for the smallest thing that you may be having trouble on.

• It is alright to feel homesick. Princess and I along with Christina are here to support you all the way through your college experience.

• It may be hard to make friends at first so if you are a shy person it is alright to not want to make friends at first, but reach out of your comfort zone. The friends you make here at college will be your friends forever 

• "Never stop being you, No matter what". Always stay true to who you are and do not be afraid to show that here at Dominican. At Dominican we are all about inclusivity

• Every moment is a fresh start here so do not be afraid to try something new whether it is joining a club here on campus or deciding you want to join athletics or rec sports. 

• HAVE FUN!!! you are no longer in high school so go out their into the world and have fun!! but be safe 

Coming into Dominican for the first time as a freshman was a bit intimidating for me because as a student athlete you move in way before everyone else does. Which meant that I would not know who my roommates would be until they moved in which made me a bit anxious because it made me feel likem what if they don't like me or what if they hate that I have to wake up at 5:00am every morning for practices. I was not as homesick as I thought I would be and this was partially due to the fact that I would go to a sleep away camp in Colorado almost every summer so I was use to being away from my family for along time. The other part of me while moving in was thinking if my classes would be way to challenging for me and not being able to talk to my professors. As classes started each of my professor made it clear that they would be available no matter what which really calmed my anxiety down. I learned to reach out to my professor whenever I had a question or needed extension but ahead of time because it allowed them to provide me with the help that I needed. This created a relationship with my professor if I ever need a recommendation letter from someone. I had ups and downs during my first year at Dominican but so does everyone else and that it what makes your college experience stronger than ever. I joined several clubs on campus such as PRIDE club, PSAAC, and applied to become a Peer Mentor. Putting myself out there allowed me to become a stronger and more confident person than I was during high school. Don't be afraid in your first year at college to put yourself our there! Always remember to be true to yourself and be yourself, no matter what!

Feeling like you belong in a new setting can be extremely hard when making a transition from High School to College. At first I struggled with feeling like if fit in with my cross country team because being the newbie on a team can be extremely hard. It was important for me to take deep breathes and pause each day then rushing through the day. Allowing myself to do that allowed me to find my happy place at Dominican and made me feel like I belonged here. I could not have done that without the support of the integrative coaches, professors, and atheltic department here at Dominican. Each one of them made sure that everyone felt included. Inclusivity is a top priority here at Dominican and is one of the main reason I chose Dominican. Being a queer indigenous student in High School was hard enough because it made me feel like I had to prove to others that I belonged at Santa Fe Prep. So when I came into Dominican all the worries of feeling like I had to prove to other went away. Each professor and integrative coach created a space where everyone felt welcomed. As well as when it came to athletics at Dominican, Amy Henkelman who is the head of the athletic department makes it her duty to make sure every athlete feels welcomed and feels like they belong here at Dominican. The Peer Mentor Program at Dominican has done an amazing job of making sure that all incoming freshman and transfer feel like they belong here at Dominican. I can proudly say at the end of every day that I am happy to be a Penguin!