More Than a University

by Isabel Contreras

With all the unpredictable events that can take us for a loop in our lives, I am grateful to be on this campus. I have gained more than an education; I have learned to embody the spirit of this campus and engage in my both my own and my peers’ character development. While my journey is far from over, I am thankful for the opportunity to share some of the lessons myself and my fellow Captains have learned over the past two years.

We have bonded, grown, hurt and celebrated together as a community, and not just as a college campus. Already I have seen the power of this student body. We have made leaps and bounds academically, innovated new and inventive methods of research and organizational structure, demonstrated our leadership potential through competitive programs, and yet the most important acts I have witnessed have been those of the unsung heroes on campus. The students who stayed up all night to help a friend, who surprised us with exactly what we needed at exactly the right time, who were our silent support at the counseling center, the gym buddy we did not know we needed, and so much more.

Honestly, I could go on. Our administrators, faculty and students have made the commitment to dive deeper than the average college member and we exemplify this vow through our actions even more than our words. So, I will leave you with this: do not stop. As Captains, we push ourselves every step of the way, even beyond our four years at Christopher Newport. We are proud to call ourselves Captains and lead lives of true significance.