UNIV 101

Name | Jerica Burgess 
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Academic Advisor
Department | Health, Sport, & Exercise Sciences in the School of Education & Human Sciences
Education | Masters in Higher Education Administration from KU | Bachelors in English and Communication Studies with a minor in Leadership from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Hometown | Lincoln, Nebraska

What is your favorite spot on campus?

• My favorite spot on campus is Allen Fieldhouse. The school spirit and energy during the basketball games is incredible. You can find me cheering on the Jayhawks at all of the home games during basketball season!

What 3 words would students use to describe you and your teaching style?

• Positive, Organized, and Caring. I enjoy getting to know my students and hope to serve as a mentor and support system as you transition to college.

Name | Julie Hamel
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Assistant Director
Department | Student Programming, TRIO SES
Education | BA, Spanish from KU | BS, Education from KU | MS, Counseling & Personnel Services from Kansas State University | Ph.D, Counseling & Student Development from Kansas State University
Hometown | Concordia, KS

What is your favorite spot on campus?

• Check out the great view from the Pavilion below Blake Hall. It looks out over the prairie planting and the southwest side of campus and is a great place to spend a quiet moment.

What is your best tip for succeeding at KU?

• Attend all of your classes, even when the content is hard and you are feeling lost!  Reach out to the instructors, ask questions, find a study buddy, but keep attending.

Name | Alejandra Hernandez-Castro
Pronouns | She/Hers/Ella
Title | Student Success Specialist
Department | TRIO SES-STEM
Education | BA, Political Science | MS, Counseling Psychology
Hometown | Hugoton, KS

What do you enjoy about teaching UNIV courses?

• I love teaching UNIV 101 because it’s a great chance to get to know our TRIO students and Hixson scholars and really welcome them to the KU campus. I also really enjoy the connections we build with our students as we guide them through their first year of college. Watching our students grow and succeed during their time at KU is a pretty special thing.

What is your best tip for succeeding at KU?

• My best advice for succeeding at KU is to find your “person.” This can be an advisor, mentor, professor, or staff member that can help guide you and be your “go to” person when you need help. They can connect you to resources, opportunities, and other people who will support your success!  

Name | Erin Kelley-Garrison
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Academic Advisor
Department | Undergraduate Biology Program
Education | BS from Emporia State University | MS of Education from KU
Hometown | Rushville, Missouri

What is your favorite KU or Lawrence tradition?

• I love Hawk Week! Everyone is excited to be back on campus and there are so many things to do around town and on campus! I say go to everything and take your roommate/floor members with you!

How did you find your people/make connections when you were in college?

• I went through formal recruitment my first week at Emporia and joined a sorority! Going through the process helped me make friends and understand college life! While I don’t think joining a sorority is for everyone, joining an organization is so important! It helps you create a connection with people that are interested in the same things you are!

Name | Meg Kumin
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Photographer
Department | Marketing Communications
Education | BA, American Studies from KU | MS Computer Science from KU
Hometown | Lenexa, KS

What do you enjoy about teaching UNIV courses?

• I love teaching UNIV because I love helping first-year students to discover who they are, who they want to become, and how the KU community (and its resources) can help them fulfill their goals and dreams. I am passionate about creating a warm, welcoming environment and I am dedicated to supporting and connecting my students in every way possible.

What 3 words would students use to describe you and your teaching style?

• Open, Creative, Uplifting

Name | Chelsea Lantz-Cashman
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | First-Year Course Coordinator
Department | Academic Programs and Experiential Learning
Education | BA, Western Carolina University
Hometown | Bryson City, North Carolina

What is your favorite spot on campus?

• When I arrived in Kansas from the mountains of North Carolina, I had one goal in mind: find a long walk that would tucker out the dog and allow her to flop around in a body of water. After a long week of unpacking, the pup and I hoofed it around campus and happened upon Potter’s Lake. Once we hit the grass, the pup took off to the shore to hunt frogs in the shallows and the rest is history.  Six years later, Potter’s Lake remains a primary destination on weekend excursions with my pup.

What's the best class you've ever taken and why?

• The History of Baseball.  The class should have been called the History of the Yankees because my professor was a hard-core fan, but regardless of the “specialized” focus at times, this class was my first introduction to sports’ history, specifically baseball history.  I think it appealed to me because it flipped my idea of “history” on its head; I had no idea such niche studies existed (and the course reading list was stellar).  This class grew my love of baseball into a love of old baseball that carried into many a research paper across my academic career.

Name | Tonya Waller
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | CCAMPIS Director
Department | CEOP/AAI
Education | BA from KU | EdD from KU | MEd from Washburn University
Hometown | Brooklyn, New York

What do you enjoy about teaching UNIV courses?

• I enjoy teaching UNIV101 because my section serves primarily first-generation college students, and being a first-gen college student myself, I know how difficult it can be to navigate college during your first year. I hope to help mitigate those difficulties, provide a safe and welcoming space for students, and show students that they belong here.

How did you find your people/make connections when you were in college?

• I grew up in Brooklyn, NY so coming to KU was quite the culture shock for me.  I found my people by joining the Black Student Union. Being able to connect with students that looked like me was so important, and BSU provided a support network of friends with whom I remain in contact to this day.

Name | Michelle D. Wilson
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Assistant Director of Academic & Professional Development
Department | TRIO SES & STEM
Education | Bachelor of General Studies from KU | Master of Liberal Studies with a concentration in Public Administration from Washburn University | Working towards a Ph.D in Communications with a concentration in Organizational Communication from KU
Hometown | Tecumseh, KS

What was your most memorable moment as a first-year student?

• My most memorable moments as a first-year student at KU was making late night runs to Joe’s Bakery, playing basketball at Robinson Gymnasium, and attending all the football and men’s basketball games, and the KU Relays.

What is your best tip for succeeding at KU?

• My best tips for succeeding at KU are: 1) Take advantage of the many resources available on campus; 2) get to know a diverse group of people; 3) get out of your comfort zone to get involved; 4) make genuine connections to build your network.

Name | Olivia Brice
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Hawk Link Coordinator
Department | Hawk Link Success Team
Education | B.S. in Psychology from Murray State University | M.A. in Non-Profit Leadership from Webster University 
Hometown | St. Louis, MO

What was your most memorable moment as a first-year student?

• My most memorable moment as a first-year student was during the first week of classes, much like Hawk Week here, we had a week of events to kick off the school year. One of the nights a hypnotist did a show on campus and had people falling in love and acting like dogs.

How did you find your people/make connections when you were in college?

• I attended events in my residence hall and if I liked what someone said in a class, I tried to connect with them once class was over.

Name | Kayla Bjorlie
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Doctoral Student
Department | Psychology
Education | B.A. in Psychology from NDSU | M.A. in Psychology from KU | Working towards Ph.D.
Hometown | Fargo, ND

What is your best tip for succeeding at KU?

• Think ahead and plan ahead! Getting a head start on homework, studying, resume-building experiences etc. can all be a huge help, especially because time can really fly by.

What is your advice for leveraging your time at KU?

• Use the great resources available to you, such as the writing center or career center. People are also here to support you throughout your time at KU (e.g., your academic advisor)

Name | Krystle Perkins
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Assistant Director
Department | Jayhawk Academic Advising
Education | B.A. in History + B.A. in Spanish from Lyon College | M.A. in Medieval History from KU | Working towards Ph.D. in Medieval History from KU
Hometown | Coushatta, Louisiana

What was your most memorable moment as a first-year student?

• My undergrad had mentor groups that took a UNIV 101-type class in the fall. The 12 of us had to design, build, and pilot a boat across the campus lake in a raft race against the other mentor groups (with faculty joining in). The whole campus came out to watch! We could only use cardboard, duct tape, and pvc pipe! The epic fails for most groups were pretty hilarious.

What 3 words would students use to describe you and your teaching style?

• Creative, Supportive, and Humorous – I strive to make my classes a place where all can join in, make friends, help each other out, and have fun while learning new things. I also like to implement different tactics and tools for learning; I’ll use art, music, film, literature, social media, games, etc., in my assignments that allow for collaboration and getting out of our seats.

Name | Jared Ohm
Pronouns | He/Him/His
Title | Doctoral Student
Department | Educational Psychology
Education | B.S. with minors in Psychology and Biochemistry from Northwest Missouri State University | M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Emporia State University 
Hometown | Wichita, KS

What was the best class you took in college?

• The best class I’ve ever taken actually was during my undergraduate years on Comparative Religions. I learned so much and it was one of my first big dives into the cultural diversity present within different religions/spirituality outside the Western world. It was also tough because of the requirement for contrasting and writing critically about different religions but definitely one of the best random electives I took during my undergraduate career.

What is your advice for leveraging your time at KU?

• The best advice I would give for leveraging your time at KU would be to develop relationships with faculty members both inside and outside your field. Those relationship will be critical to your development and pursuit of both your academic and personal goals.

Name | George Timson
Pronouns | He/Him/His
Title | Academic Advisor
Department | Jayhawk Academic Advising
Education | B.S. in Geography with a minor in Communications from Missouri State University | M.A. in Counseling (College Student Personnel) from Southern Mississippi University 
Hometown | Springfield, MO

How did you find your people/make connections with you were in college?

• I joined my residence hall’s Programming committee, and I joined one of my major’s Academic Student Organizations!

What is your best tip for succeeding at KU?

• Find a friendly rival to study with and try to outperform in each class!

Name | Kyia McDonald
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Hawk Link Coordinator
Department | Hawk Link Success Team
Education | B.A. in Sociology from KU | M.S. in Higher Education Admin from KU
Hometown | Killeen, Texas

What is your favorite spot on campus?

• My favorite spot on campus is Wescoe beach because you can take a relaxing break on the steps.

What was the best class you took in college?

• The best class I’ve ever taken were all of my sociology courses (with the exception of stats) because they taught me how to have educational conversations regarding social topics and issues.

Name | Grace Bagley
Pronouns | She/Her/Hers
Title | Academic Advisor
Department | Jayhawk Academic Advising
Education | B.S. in Anthropology from Kansas State University | M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Texas at San Antonio
Hometown | Topeka, KS

What is your best tip for succeeding at KU?

• The biggest key to success in college is, go to class! Class attendance is often a significant portion of your grade so missing class means missing points. Going to class provides you with direct access to your professors who are experts in the course material, allows you to get clarification and feedback, helps you to build relationships with other students, and helps you to develop a sense of accountability and discipline which are good habits to cultivate before starting your career!

What is your advice for leveraging your time at KU?

• Leveraging your time at KU involves making the most of everything that is available to you. Take advantage of academic resources including tutoring, the writing center, the career center, libraries, and research facilities. Build relationships with your professors, classmates, advisor, and professionals in your field of interest. Explore subjects outside of you major to broaden your knowledge base, build critical thinking skills, and open up new possibilities. Embrace experiential learning experiences like internships, study abroad, or research to help apply your knowledge and gain perspective. Take part in extracurricular activities like organizations, clubs, or recreational sports to supplement your academics and further develop transferrable skills like teamwork, problem-solving, leadership, and adaptability. There are so many resources and opportunities at KU, so take advantage!