When I graduated high school, I felt incredibly depressed. The place I had come to know over the past four years, my stomping grounds, my high school was something of the past. I felt uneasy, unsure, and I wasn’t ready to move on from high school. I wasn’t ready to leave California for Texas. I wasn’t ready for TCU.
Fast forward to this semester, fall 2014, and I look back at these past few years and smile at how dreadful and unsatisfying I thought my college experience would be. Why? Well, not only has TCU I exceeded my expectations, but I could never dream of going to college anywhere but here! Over the years, TCU has provided me with so many opportunities to get involved, to challenge myself, and to be more than a random face in a crowd.
While I have enjoyed time spent in class, at athletic events, at social mixers, and in the wonderful places that Fort Worth has to offer, I have particularly thrived in my involvement in various organizations. Some of my greatest accomplishments include being a Resident Assistant (also known as an RA), being a part of TCU Ambassadors, and serving as an Orientation Leader.
As an RA, I have been able to meet some of the most fantastic people in my life. In addition, I have been able to hone my people skills (pretty important when you’re dealing with people!). By planning programs, such as PB&J with the RA (it’s delicious!), conducting hall meetings, and learning about the ins and outs of housing, I feel that I have grown so much as a person. Above all, I have a greater appreciation for diversity and for what I can learn from others. This, in turn, helps me to relay these lessons to the rest of the world and to be a part of something important.
With TCU Ambassadors, I am fortunate to reach out to prospective students (one of you may even be reading this right now!). Writing letters and participating in special events, such as Mondays at TCU and Experience TCU, are just a couple of ways in which TCU goes above and beyond to make all of its students (including the future ones!) feel important and cared for. The TCU Ambassadors organization holds a special place in my heart, as I remember all too well the stressful process of applying to schools. Ambassadors helps me to communicate with prospective students and hopefully share some wise and comforting words with them and their families; it lets me pay it forward.
Lastly, being an Orientation Leader has pretty much made me a TCU Encyclopedia! I learned more than I ever thought I would about TCU, and I was able to help incoming students along the way! Performing an orientation skit, aiding in the schedule-building process, and even holding up a small purple sign were just some of the activities that composed quite a memorable summer for me. Again, this was another way in which I could reach out to others and make them feel at home in this TCU community, in this Horned Frog family.
Now, bringing all of this back to the present, it is my senior year, and I am feeling exactly how I did four years ago. But, this time, I don’t want to leave TCU. Whether I’m ready or not to leave this amazing institution, I will forever be grateful for all that TCU has given me. So, while I can spend all the time I want to reminiscing on my aforementioned experiences and involvement and while I can feel depressed about the seemingly uncertain and scary future, I can also cherish the fact that I will always be a TCU Horned Frog.
Mackie Moreno is a senior Communication Studies and Psychology double major with a Spanish minor from Trabuco Canyon, California. She is involved in TCU Ambassadors, Lambda Pi Eta the Communication Honors Society, the John V. Roach Honors College, and serves as an Orientation Leader and a Resident Assistant.
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