When Colin Campagne ’27 (Chillicothe, Ohio) talks about Marietta College to his friends and family, a smile immediately comes to his face.
He describes Marietta's beautiful campus and surrounding community, the advantages of smaller class sizes, and being a part of a community that values him as an individual.
“I also tend to talk about how the professors care how the students are doing on a personal level and truly want their students to succeed here at the College and in life,” says Campagne, a History Education major (7-12) pursuing a Teacher Leadership Certificate through the McDonough Leadership Program.
Though Campagne is still in his first year at Marietta, he has already made quite a mark on campus as a leader who is ready and willing to get involved. In addition to his challenging workload, he has stepped up to help organize the Make a Difference Day project and the MLK Day of Service, expanded his knowledge about social justice by attending the Civil Rights Trip to Alabama, and, most recently, helped organize teams of student volunteers to assist the local community during the April flood.
“I got involved in these things because I came to MC with a desire to fit in and join things that would make me be a successful part of the campus,” Campagne says. “With Make a Difference Day, I saw a need for leadership role that needed to be filled, so I chose to step up to the plate and make sure the event went smoothly. With my position on the MLK committee, I was asked to fill in a student position, and I thought it was interesting to be a part of the planning committee and found some true joy with planning the event. I would like to say that I’ve always been involved, but it has really sparked here at Marietta, allowing myself to find a new passion for campus involvement.”
As a highly organized person — and, yes, he loves creating spreadsheets — Campagne was among the first students to respond to a campus email asking for volunteers to help local businesses and nonprofits as they prepared to deal with the flooding of the Ohio and Muskingum rivers in early April.
Dr. Alexandra Perry, Dean of McDonough, says he was in her office just minutes after the email was sent and volunteered to organize help. As flood level predictions changed over the next few days, flurries of update messages were sent by Campagne to ensure fellow student volunteers had the most up-to-date information regarding when and where their help would be needed.
Tony Mayle, Associate Dean of Students and Director of Diversity & Inclusion, says Campagne doesn’t seem to know a stranger, and that his personality makes people feel like they’ve known him for years.
“To me, Colin is not just motivated, he’s really a people person, he loves reaching out to people in need, and that’s why I believe he will continue to be a major social justice advocate and a person of change here at Marietta College,” Mayle says.
Eventually, Campagne would like to be a high school principal. For now, he is busy keeping up with his classes and staying involved in the campus community.
“When I first came to campus, I was looking for things to join and SGA, PAC, and other organizations fit right in,” he says. “The people who ran the organizations were welcoming and so kind allowing me to flourish into the student I am now. These organizations have helped me understand how to manage my time and allow me to become a better student.”