As the 2025 Spring Semester begins, students used the first week to prepare themselves for classes.
While the new semester appears daunting, some students are grateful for understanding professors. Max Hill, a junior from Huntington, said his professors have made it worth braving the snow and ice.
“I’ve been slipping everywhere,” Hill said. “That’s the challenge, walking from class to class, but the teachers make it great. Syllabus, everything, they go over it very well, so I have no complaints.”
Dylan Morgan, a junior from Fairdale, West Virginia, said he doesn’t like going over the syllabus in every class, but he is excited for the new semester based on what professors have said about previous classes.
“I do think it’s a little annoying going over the syllabus the first day in every class, because it’s mostly the same thing,” Morgan said, “but some of the professors have already expressed how they teach class, how students have done in the past, and some of them have given us ways to study. Overall, we’ll be fine.”
For freshmen, this semester is a chance to further adjust to the college lifestyle and have more freedom with their schedule. Somy Slonaker, a freshman from Clendenen, West Virginia, said her second semester is allowing her a chance to learn more about what she does and does not prefer.
“I’m definitely enjoying my classes,” Slonaker said. “It’s my second semester here, so I’m definitely finding things I do and do not enjoy compared to how they made my schedule for me last semester and coming out of high school where you also didn’t get as much of a say.”
Slonaker said she has enjoyed the extra freedom given to her.
“It’s really given me that opportunity of, ‘Hey, I get to choose what I want to do, and I get to take classes that I’m actually going to enjoy at times when I’m going to actually be able to enjoy them,’” Slonaker said. “I got a very good set of professors this semester, and they all seem very understanding and very kind.”
Sophomore Matthias Garavaglia, said although his schedule is a little challenging, he is excited for the new semester.
“My schedule is pretty tough,” Garavaglia said, “so there’s been some stress with it. A little bit of uncertainty what exactly it’s going to be like, but it’s been good. It’s exciting to be back on campus.”
While Garavaglia himself was stressed, he said his extracurriculars were helping him manage. In fact, he was helping his campus ministry group help other stressed out students.
“I’m doing a lot of extracurricular stuff, that way I don’t get overwhelmed with school work,” Garavaglia said. “We’re with a campus ministry group called CRU, and we’re just holding up signs to see if anyone wants prayer over anything in their lives.”
Garavaglia said the group wanted to be available for those struggling during the week.
“We know that there’s a lot of stress, right,” Garavaglia said. “We just want to be there for our fellow peers and even staff as well.”
Nolan Duncan can be contacted at [email protected].
