Finding a voice

Admittedly shy, Christina Budd ’13 has never been used to speaking in front of large crowds. But as a new student at Randolph College last year, she found herself compelled to step up to a microphone in front of a large audience at a student government town hall meeting.

Christina Budd, right, has found that participating in campus life
has helped her fit in at Randolph and increase her self confidence

Budd spoke about the beautiful campus that had helped attract her to Randolph as a transfer student, and she shared suggestions she thought would make life easier for the staff that cleans and maintains the campus. The rest of that week, people approached her and thanked her for speaking up—a reaction she hadn’t expected.

“I’ve learned that I do have a voice,” Budd said, reflecting on that experience and other lessons at Randolph. “I’m a naturally introverted person, but I have found that people are willing to listen to what I have to say, and they seem to respond well to it. That has given me so much confidence in myself that I never had before.”

Meet Lisa Davies

As a community college graduate who went on to receive a master’s degree, Lisa knows much about navigating college as a transfer. She now advises students thinking about transferring to Randolph.

Budd, from Roanoke, Virginia, first heard about Randolph at a college fair in high school. She took note of it because of school’s creative writing program. After one year at Virginia Western  Community College, she learned about Virginia Private College Week, an event in July when people who tour at least three participating schools receive application fee waivers. She decided that would be a good opportunity to visit Randolph.

“I think it was love at first sight,” she said. “The buildings were so incredibly beautiful. I knew I would be able to learn best at a small college where I could know my professors and have a relationship with them.” Soon, she was meeting with an admissions counselor and getting advice on which courses to take during her second year at the community college to best prepare for Randolph. Budd is now majoring in history and minoring in sociology.

By the end of her second semester, Budd was involved in numerous clubs on campus and had served as an officer for some of them. This year, she is the vice president of Randolph’s Circle K International, a service club. She is helping the group organize participation in Relay for Life, March of Dimes, and a dance for teenagers and adults with disabilities. The group also hosts campus cleanup activities about once a month, Budd said.

Her involvement with many activities helped Budd make many friends despite being new to Randolph. “I got involved on campus through clubs, volunteering, and special events,” she said. “That’s what I did, and that’s what helped me become better known on campus.”