Hundreds of incoming Troy University freshmen spent the weekend unloading boxes from their vehicles, excited about starting a new chapter in their lives.
When reflecting on their decision to choose TROY, the students and their loved ones honed in on one word that cemented their choice — family.
“It’s just more family oriented,” said Latonya Walton, whose son, Cameron, is an incoming freshman. “It was closer to us, and I felt like the campus would be safe. We were very pleased with everything from admissions to housing. Nobody needed to recruit us. We were already sold on everything here.”
Cameron, who attended Selma High School, was particularly impressed Saturday by the campus’ appearance.
“I think the campus is beautiful, comfortable and seems safe,” said Cameron, who plans to major in graphic design and minor in music. “I think the campus is beautiful. It’s really nice, very comfortable, and it seems safe.”
Jonah Hughes’ family has ties to TROY, but the Abbeville Christian Academy graduate fell in love with the idea of building a new family at the University.
“My family’s been here for the longest time, but the more I started coming here, the more I really liked it,” he said. “It’s smaller and more intimate, and that creates a more tight-knit group. That’s what I really liked about it.”
Hughes is looking forward to forging new bonds, especially since he’ll be around far more fellow students than he’s experienced before.
“My graduating class in Abbeville was 25 people,” he said. “I’m looking forward to meeting a lot of new people and making a lot of new connections and friends.”
TROY’s criminal justice program impressed Shaw High School (Columbus, Georgia) graduate Demarcus Ragland, but he, like other freshmen, fell in love with the family atmosphere.
“It’s like a hometown, not too big, not too small, and everybody’s friendly,” Ragland said. “It’s nice all around, plus it’s a beautiful campus.”
He also plans to participate in the University’s ROTC program, as his father is retired from the military.
“It’s a more friendly, more hands-on school to me,” said Qundia Ragland, Demarcus’ mother. “It’s close to my parents’ home in Hurtsboro, and it’s just a good environment for a family oriented school. The ROTC program and the people we met in the program were great. The cohesion is really good.”
Jude Ranck chose TROY after graduating from St. Augustine High School in Florida due to its inclusive campus environment.
“It’s the diversity and options as far as what you have for school and what I can learn, but also the diversity in students and student life, what I can be involved in after class,” Ranck said. “I feel like it makes more sense to be part of a campus where everything is super immersive rather than one where you’re just one of 20,000.”
Classes begin at the Troy Campus this Wednesday.
