Photo Courtesy of Camel Companions
If you’re a first-year, sophomore or transfer student who is struggling to meet new people on campus, now is your chance to do so while staying safe. One of the major challenges for new students that entered college in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic was the struggle to meet new people. At the same time last year when Connecticut College went mostly remote with limited in-person interactions, co-founders Lydia Chase ‘21 and Emily Suher ‘21, found a way to welcome new students through the creation of Camel Companions, a club that aimed for upper-classmen to eat lunch with a group of first-years as a way for new students to get out of their rooms and meet new people. Now, the initiative of Camel Companions has returned with one simple goal: to have fun while making meaningful connections and making new friends. The new leaders of the program consist of three upper-class students: Luci McGlynn ‘22, Ella Ross ‘23, and Kai Listgarten ‘23. So far this semester, 25 students, made up of first-years, sophomores, and transfer students, have signed up to attend lunches as well as a total of 42 students who have signed up to host lunches. The way that Camel Companions runs will stay the same: two hosts will take out a group of six students to lunch.
Even though this initiative has started as a result of Covid-19, the new leaders expect for the program to continue long after the pandemic is over. “I think this program will continue for many years to come,” Ross wrote via email, “It is a great way to ensure that our newer students are meeting other students, especially upperclassmen students. It allows students in our community to feel supported, and it demonstrates the level of care that this community has for its members.” The leaders were contacted by Chase and Suher to run Camel Companions after they had continued to hear about the struggle for sophomores and new students to meet new people, especially during the two week span in September when Conn moved into Alert-Level Orange.
One major plus with the return to the program is that groups can finally eat in dining halls, something that was not an option last year. In regard to new changes to the program this semester, Ross, McGlynn, and Listgarten hope to rotate hosts for each lunch as a way for attendees to have different hosts in order to meet new people. The leaders were able to work closely with Chase and Suher to ask questions and learn what the role as a program leader entails. The club leaders were also given access to old templates, Instagram accounts, and an email account to utilize for the coming year. Ross wrote, “[Chase and Suher] were really supportive and appreciative that we were taking over and thus were willing to answer any questions and still help out which is pretty awesome.”
If you are interested in becoming involved with the program either as a host or an attendee, Camel Companions is always looking for new members so it is not too late to sign up. Ross suggests looking at the SGA email sent to the college community from several weeks ago for the link to a Google Form where you can sign up to become involved. If you have any questions about the program, please email camelcompanions@gmail.com. “It’s so awesome that upperclassmen students are willing to take time out of their busy schedules to help out other camels,” Ross writes, “Camels are always willing to support each other and this is just another example and avenue to do so, regardless of the pandemic.”
