Hello, and welcome to Clemson! This is one of the most exciting times of your life – you’re beginning your college career at, in my opinion, the best university there is. 

As you begin your Clemson journey and I enter into the last year of mine, I can not stress enough how quickly the time goes. Take it all in and make the most out of every second, starting now. I know it is a really big transition – starting a completely new chapter in a new place with all new people, but Clemson is more than a college, it’s a home and the people here really are a family. So don’t be scared of the change; embrace it. 

The number one thing I have learned over my three years at Clemson is that everything happens for a reason, and sometimes you have to let life just do its thing; trust that you will always end up exactly where you are supposed to be, even if you didn’t plan or expect it. If you had told me three years ago, when I first stepped on campus as a food science major, that I would be the Editor-in-Chief of Clemson’s newspaper, I would have never believed you. But here I am now, and I could not be more grateful for every second of it. 

So, let Clemson do its thing while you do yours, and you’ll be just fine! Good luck this year; I am so beyond excited to welcome you to Clemson!
Blake Mauro is a senior political science major from Montvale, New Jersey. Blake can be reached at [email protected].