Community is the heartbeat of any college experience. For students like Grace Christensen ‘24, it’s more than just a buzzword; it is the very essence of her journey at Guilford.

Grace’s journey at Guilford started with a recommendation from her mother, who is the dean of students at a music conservatory in New York. Her mother had come across the college in a newspaper.

Intrigued by the college, Grace and her family made the journey to visit in January 2020. Recounting her experience, she says “I found it very beautiful. All the people were incredibly welcoming.”

Choosing Guilford was not a decision made in haste as Grace had other colleges and universities that called out to her. One reason that she chose Guilford was for the community. She enjoys the “tight-knit community and small college vibe.”

Her three other reasons were academics, extracurricular activities, and independence.

“I wanted to make the most out of my education,” Grace explains. “I wanted to be challenged academically in my classes and be able to get involved outside of academics.” Grace’s involvement in various aspects of Guilford life exemplifies this.

She is the president of ROAR (Reaching Out for Animal Rights), enrolled in the honors program, majoring in psychology, and pursuing minors in ceramics and community studies. She is a current principal problem solver scholar where they focus on what it means to think critically and how you can apply that to your communities. Grace works as a tour guide along with also serving as the assistant community advisor where she looks over her eleven residential advisors and more than 300 residents.

While community and academics were important to Grace, independence was just as significant.

As a result of COVID-19, Grace had spent much of her spring and summer in isolation with her parents. She wanted to be farther away from her mother and father, and she states “I was interested in really being independent because I have always relied on my parents a lot. And Guilford has really provided me the opportunity to do that.”

However, with being so far away from home, it is only natural to become homesick and miss certain things. Grace joined the Guilford community in the fall of 2020, meaning that everything was shut down. Students were not permitted to join anything until the spring of 2021. Grace joined ROAR because she was looking for a club that was starting up that she could get involved in. “I love dogs,” she says. “I needed some kind of closeness that I really only get from animals, especially since my family is really far away.”

Now that she is able to build this community, it allows her to share her multidimensional passions.

About the Author

Renata Diaz ‘24 is pursuing a degree in English and Media Studies with minors in creative writing and communications. She lives in North Carolina and enjoys reading, writing, and listening to music. She loves Guilford’s tight-knit community and wants to one day become an editor at a publishing house.