By Raven Canty '13
EDITOR'S NOTE: Catawba President and First Lady, Brien and Laura Lewis want members of the College community to feel welcomed into their home on campus. To that end, they began the academic year by scheduling a series of receptions there for faculty, staff and students. Students, in particular, were thrilled to have the opportunity. Student Raven Canty polled some of her fellow students about their experience and here's what she found.
Many students wonder what it would be like to meet their college president or even if they would ever have the chance to meet him/her. This year on our campus, for the first time, many students got the chance to meet Catawba College's new president, Brien Lewis.
Unlike at various other colleges, President Lewis wants to have a close relationship with the entire student body. He's working toward developing that relationship by inviting every student into his home and by sending out monthly emails to inform students of what is going on in the community and on campus.
"We are honored to be able to live in such a lovely home. It is truly a part of the campus and we want to make sure students feel very comfortable there," President Lewis explained. "It has been a real pleasure for us to meet students and get to know them a little better in an informal way."
Here's what some Catawba students had to say after meeting with him for the first time in his home:
;;;"Meeting President Lewis was great! He showed me that he cares about the Catawba students and wants us to succeed. We had refreshments and he made sure that he came around and met everyone." - Rebekah Brown
"President Lewis was very warm and welcoming of us in his home. He allowed us to watch the Carolina Panthers game in his living room." - Jackie Davis
"I really enjoyed taking the time out to enjoy deserts and mingle with my friends and the president." - Taryn Jenkins
"As a senior here at Catawba, I really like how President Lewis wants to be and is always visible. It's a great feeling being able to visit his house and meet him on a one-on-one level." - Garrett McAuliffe
"Catawba has forever been a small, community-like campus however, meeting President Lewis tonight and being personally invited to his house gave my teammates and me the true sense of community Catawba has been searching for. I believe President Lewis has already made remarkable changes and I am confident that he will continue to do great things!!" - Jordan Raye
If the students' responses to meeting President Lewis at his home are an indication, he has already proven himself a great addition to the Catawba community and his success here in the future is sure to be even greater.
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