VCU news

By Elinor Frisa, Dina Weinstein and Sian Wilkerson

At the start of every school year, thousands of new students step foot on Virginia Commonwealth University’s campus. There are first-years still in their teens, graduate and professional students seeking to hone their knowledge, adult learners returning to college after a hiatus or trying it for the first time, transfer students who are adjusting to a different university environment – and more. Together they inject a wave of enthusiasm and fresh perspectives into the VCU community.

VCU News talked to six new Rams to get a sense of their hopes and plans for their time at VCU.

Sincere Graham

Hometown: Roanoke, Virginia
School of the Arts

Why did you choose VCU?

I like the community; I like how it feels. Richmond is very pretty, and everybody is very different. I like diversity. So it was a good spot.

Why are you majoring in theater?

I’m studying theater, performing arts. I really enjoy movies, so that’s why I want to get into theater space. I joined late in high school, but it was a very good atmosphere and a good community behind the theater community.

So is your goal film acting?

One day. I want to be in action [movies], comedies and scary movies.

What are you most looking forward to?

Meeting more people. I love people. It takes me a minute to get out of my shell, but once I’m out there, I enjoy hearing other people’s stories and their backgrounds. So just the people.

What’s something people don’t know about you that you wish they knew?

I’m really corny. But I can make you laugh.

How will you unwind or practice self-care when school gets stressful?

I will call my parents and specifically my grandma. She’ll tell me to breathe, and I’ll just take a step back so that I can take two steps forward later.

Three words to describe VCU?

Diverse, community and support.

Kaitlyn Morgan

Hometown: Fairfax, Virginia
College of Humanities and Sciences; Honors College

Why did you choose VCU?

I chose VCU because I committed there my junior year of high school for lacrosse, and it has a good honors program where I can get into guaranteed admissions or preferred application to the medical school, which I plan to do going into my junior year.

Why are you majoring in health, exercise science and physical education?

I want to be a pediatric doctor. Because I have a little sister – her name is Brinley, and she’s 6 years old. And I’ve just really liked working with kids. I did a volunteer service my senior year where I worked with the kindergartners at my school. And since then, I’ve always known that I wanted to work with kids and help them in the future.

Has anything surprised you about VCU or Richmond so far?

I thought coming in that going to classes was going to be more of like a walk because it’s in a city and all that. But surprisingly, I’ve been enjoying the walks to my class because it’s been peaceful in the morning and just [wakes] me up a bit more.

What’s something people don’t know about you that you wish they knew?

I’m a very adventurous type. I am a scuba diver, and I love sharks and turtles. And I think that when people litter, it’s really bad and I get upset and I start yelling at them, which is pretty bad in Richmond because there is a lot of littering and all that.

How will you unwind or practice self-care when school gets stressful?

Well, for lacrosse, we need to get six hours of study hall in a week. So that’s really nice because you just sit in the Siegel Center and you basically do all your work there. And then for unwinding, I know me and my roommates, we stretch because we’re very sore from lacrosse practice and all that. And then we also go to the locker room, and we use a Normatec. A Normatec is like the pants that squeeze your legs so that it releases pressure built up from lactic acid. It’s really nice.

Sha’Dyamond Bond

Hometown: Amelia County, Virginia
School of Social Work

Why did you choose VCU?

I chose VCU because of the diversity and the acceptance, and I feel safe and heard. And just the campus itself is beautiful. It’s authentic.

Why are you pursuing a master’s in social work?

It all started with my grandparents. They were foster parents and they adopted children, so that was the motivation for me to go into the social work field. It’s like now I’m on the outside looking in and helping others, too.

What are you most looking forward to? 

Just meeting a lot of new people. The schools that I came from didn’t have too many people, but VCU has [almost] 30,000 students, so I’m ready to get connected, make a lot of friends and relationships with professors.

Do you plan to join any clubs or do anything outside of your academic program?

I want to; however, I just need to find time to balance since I’m so new to the graduate program. I want to make sure everything is on point before I start anything, so maybe this semester, maybe next semester – but I really want to. I’m in [the Child Welfare Stipend Program] so I go to a field placement. They placed me at C2Adopt in Henrico.

How’s that placement going?

It’s for the whole year, twice a week. It’s going very well. I’m actually getting that experience and watching my supervisor go out here and show me how things work in the social work field. it’s like, wow, that’s going to be me one day.

Have you been working with kids?

I haven’t met any kids yet. However, I have met potential adoptive parents.

Three words to describe VCU?

Diverse, accepting and amazing.

Jack Day

Hometown: Williamsburg, Virginia
Richard T. Robertson School of Media and Culture

Why did you choose VCU?

I really liked the urban campus, and I just knew that they would have a really good program for mass communications. So with those two, I really just feel at home here.

Why are you majoring in mass communications?

I’m really passionate about the subject, and being able to write for a job just sounds really interesting to me.

Has anything surprised you about VCU or Richmond so far?

Nothing has really caught me off guard – except for the community. Everyone’s really inviting here, and everyone is just really eager to make friends and be involved. So that was shocking, but it was a nice change of pace for me.

Do you plan to join any clubs or do anything outside of your academic program?

I’m looking at a few clubs right now. I’m joining Green Action, which is an environmentalist club, so I’m trying to join some of those and some of the student news organizations. There’s a few student papers on campus, so I’m trying to get involved.

How will you unwind or practice self-care when school gets stressful?

Right now when I get stressed out, I either just take a walk about campus through Monroe Park because it’s so nice – or in the back of Gladding Residence Center, there’s hammocks, so that’s also a good place to just sit and relax, too.

Three words to describe VCU?

Inclusive, creative and passionate

London Gaskins

Hometown: La Plata, Maryland
School of Pharmacy; Honors College

Why did you choose VCU?

I liked the environment when I visited campus. It felt very welcoming and inclusive, and that’s something I value in choosing a place to go, whether it be school or work.

Why are you majoring in pharmaceutical sciences?

I’ve always been into medicine, but I recently got into pharmacy after doing a pharmacy technician course, and I just fell in love with it.

What are you most looking forward to?

Probably continuing my studies. That sounds lame, I mean, because right now I’m just in the foundational courses, but I’m looking forward to getting in actual pharmacy-related stuff. That’s going to be really fun.

Has anything surprised you about VCU or Richmond so far?

Not necessarily college, but more so me in college. I thought it would be a really rough adjustment, but I’ve been chilling. I settled in really well, faster than I thought I would. I do miss home and all that, but I also love it here. So it’s two homes basically.

Do you plan to join any clubs or do anything outside of your academic program?

I saw so many clubs at SOVO Fair. I don’t remember all of them, but I’m definitely going to join some, for sure. I actually joined the Red Cross Club already, but I’ve been looking into Greek life. I’m not too sure yet.

Three words to describe VCU?

Entertaining, lively and welcoming.

Jasmyn Smith

Hometown: Laurel, Maryland
School of Dentistry

Why did you choose VCU?

I chose VCU because of the sense of family and camaraderie among the students and the faculty. In addition to that, VCU has some pretty state-of-the-art technology, especially in the dentistry field, so I thought it would be a great place to pursue my education.

Why are you pursing your Doctor of Dental Surgery degree?

It began as a love for and an appreciation for dentistry. Eventually, as I progressed through my educational career, I developed more of an appreciation and desire to provide health care to people in the community.

What are you most looking forward to?

I’m most looking forward to establishing relationships with my classmates, as we’ll all be future colleagues here in the next couple of years. I’m really looking forward to getting to learn from the faculty and from the students alike and develop a solid foundation as I pursue a career in dentistry.

Do you plan to join any clubs or do anything outside of your academic program?

I didn’t have a traditional experience in undergrad because I joined the military straight out of high school and balanced work and my undergrad, so I’m really looking forward to participating in student organizations. Being so new, I’m trying to learn a little bit about all of the different programs or student club organizations at the School of Dentistry. I’m really looking forward to learning more about the specialties but also partaking in some of the student organizations.

How will you unwind or practice self-care when school gets stressful?

I enjoy shopping. That is my self-care routine. I enjoy going to a grocery store, planning for a meal. I enjoy going outdoors. It’s a little toasty out here in Richmond, so I might not go on a run in the middle of the day, but I do enjoy grocery shopping and running.

Three words to describe VCU?

Fun, familial and cutting-edge.