Flyers for Life

By Hailee Rennels ‘18

Author bio
Hometown: Findlay, Ohio
Major: Marketing
Favorite UD home: Stuart
UD role: I enjoyed being president of the Student Alumni Association because I got to meet so many students and alumni, and I had some really unique experiences through the organization!

The Student Alumni Association hosted the annual Senior Picnic last week. It was a great chance to catch up with friends and a reminder to enjoy our last few days before graduation.

The Senior Picnic was an opportunity for seniors to come together for a meal, gift and games as we prepared to go into our last finals week and graduation. Seniors enjoyed a sunny day at ArtStreet with burgers, a senior class gift from the Alumni Association, Ben and Jerry’s ice cream and much more. We had a record number of seniors attend the event; it was a huge success!

Students loved the event. It was really cool to get to see people that I have not seen since freshman year and talk to them about future plans. And, students enjoyed the chance to talk to campus partners like Career Services and the Alumni Association about what life after college looks like. It was so easy to see everyone I wanted to see, so I can spend finals week focused on exams and my future.

The Alumni Association had a table at the event to inform students on how to stay connected with UD after college and how to get involved as an alum. Although I will miss the place that I have called home the last four years, I am very excited to be an alum because of all of the opportunities I have to give back to students! Many alumni helped me out along my journey, and I hope that I can do the same for other students.

I wish more students knew ways to get involved wherever they go. Even though you no longer live on campus and hang out with friends every day, you can still hang out with Flyers in a different location. There are so many opportunities to participate in events on and off campus! I hope other alumni reach out to new grads and invite them to events; it helps to know you’ll see a friendly face when you arrive.

My work with the Alumni Association made me less nervous about graduation. The alumni that I interacted with over the past four years gave me confidence that life after college is not as bad as it may seem.