Members of the student organization Brother 2 Brother (B2B) at Georgia Highlands College (GHC) recently attended and spoke at the American Association of College and Universities (AAC&U) Conference on Diversity, Equity and Student Success, held in Henderson, NV.
Presenting on the topic “Barriers at the Crossroads: How Students Struggle with Transitions and Learn to Overcome Them,” B2B leader Damani Johnson-Taylor and Student Government Association (SGA) Vice President Jalen Hudson shared their experiences.
“We spoke about the challenges and transitions minority men face when going to college, and I spoke about transitions from high school to college and regular classes to core curriculum courses,” Damani said.
To prepare for their session, Damani and Jalen gave one another feedback on their presentations and shared ideas on how to speak about their experiences together and individually.
Damani said he appreciated engaging with other attendees and hearing others talk about the issues they face as they navigate toward their goals in higher education.
“I found that being in different rooms with different people was important,” Damani said. “I also loved hearing about the different issues that many of the presentations were bringing awareness about.”
Jalen spoke in-depth on maintaining relationships as well as how vulnerable students can be when in the transferring process. He said he also appreciated the opportunity to network with other college students and leaders during the conference.
“I was able to get in contact with different schools and see how they are carrying out different academic strategies, or different ways of just engaging,” Jalen said. “I definitely noticed some strategies and people I’d like to remain in contact with.”
Damani and Jalen also took ideas back at their chapter of the B2B organization.
“Something I would like to apply to GHAME/B2B is being open-minded and aware of the different resources that are available if you reach out and the act of networking,” Damani said. “You never know who you can meet and how your life will change.”
In addition, GHAME Coordinator Evan Snelling, Project Director of Inclusion & Equity Jon Hershey and Marietta Campus Dean Ken Reaves spoke on the topic of “Barriers at the Crossroads: How Students Struggle with Transitions and Learn to Overcome Them.”
