Kick-off events offer chances to connect

With a new semester comes opportunities for the University of North Georgia (UNG) to welcome students to campus with multiple events for fun, personal growth and building relationships. Activities that encourage students to meet others, interact with faculty and staff, and become better acquainted with resources, opportunities and expectations have been planned for all five UNG campuses from Aug. 11-22.

"The Center for Student Engagement & Leadership is hosting Weeks of Welcome, an event that's designed to help new students transition to Nighthawk life by building community, offering key campus resources and ensuring a welcoming start to their academic journey," David G. Michener, director of Student Involvement, said.

"It's always been like a cool place to connect, especially because everyone is getting back to campus," Lockwood said. "It's a chance to catch up and talk and see what happened over the summer."

Looking back, Lockwood realized that her friendship with Russell goes back to that one moment.

"She's a very close friend of mine and, thinking back on it, one of the first big moments we had together was doing Weeks of Welcome," the Peachtree City, Georgia, resident said.

Lockwood is a junior pursuing a degree in marketing with a digital marketing concentration.

Russell encourages everyone to attend, even seniors who live on campus.

"It's a good way to meet people," she said. "You don't know each other. You're just standing there, and you get to talking. And it starts a good friendship."

Russell is from Watkinsville, Georgia, and is pursuing a degree in finance.