A tie for all occasions

The students lined up early, ready with plenty of questions for me. About 100 of them even wore ties. Well, sort of.

Members of the Community Government Association, sponsor of a recent “Meet the President” event, and students lucky enough to win one of the giveaways, wore specially made necktie T-shirts with a popular quote from the movie Independence Day on the back: “If I had known I was gonna meet the president, I would’ve worn a tie.”

It was a classic symbol of our student body here at Bloomsburg University. The shirts were thoughtful and creative, as well as humorous. It was a great touch to a wonderful campus event to help kick off the fall semester.

Spearheaded by Justine Albright, a CGA executive board member, the student leadership organized a two-hour meet-and-greet outside our Warren Student Services Center. It was an open invitation to all students, so we weren’t sure how many would accept without having a formal RSVP in place.

I must say we were pleased to see so many students take time between classes and lunch to spend a few minutes getting to know me. CGA estimates roughly a 1,000 students in attendance, and we had students lined up to talk for more than an hour.

Some of the most common questions were:

• What are the goals for the year for the school?
• How did you become president?
• Were you ever a professor and what did you teach?
• What is your vision for Bloomsburg in the future?

I also thought it was interesting how many wanted my advice on different things. Among the most common questions were about their majors and whether they should take a minor. One that has stuck in my mind was from a biochemistry major who wanted to know if she should minor in dance. Interesting pairing, but that’s a Husky for you … always thinking outside the box.