Elizabethtown College hosted its President for a Day program Wednesday, March 31 in order to give students the opportunity to see first-hand how the College runs at an administrative level and to present ideas on how to better the student experience both on and off campus. President Cecilia McCormick swapped places with junior business administration major Nicole Greiner, wherein McCormick spent the day as a student while Greiner took over administration of the College.
When Greiner found out she would be part of the program, she was both shocked and excited because she knew all of the applicants were equally deserving and all had great ideas.
“I was really nervous up until today. I’ve been really nervous just to make sure I know everything going on… definitely nervous and excited!” Greiner said.
Her schedule was packed for the entire day, from when she arrived just before 8:30 a.m. until she would meet at the President’s House for dinner at 6 p.m. First thing in the morning were meetings and photo ops, followed by introductions to the senior leadership team and a rundown of the departments, college happenings and statistics from Etown’s website. After that came a phone call with McCormick and a media timeslot.
The rest of her day was just as busy as the first half: after the media time, she had a bit of a break to write thank-you notes and prepare for – and then attend – a lunch with donors to a College project. Greiner would then prepare for a meeting with board members and the event on the patio of the Brossman Commons at 3:30 p.m. She also attended a senior leadership team meeting, where they discussed a mission of connectiveness, and ended her day with the dinner at the President’s House.
“I didn’t really have any expectations coming into this because I didn’t want to fog my brain up or anything,” Greiner said. “The biggest thing I was looking forward to was just getting to know more of what happens behind the scenes and getting to ask questions.”
She was also excited to talk to people she would not normally get to talk to and taking what she learned from this experience and sharing it with her peers. For example, she explained how she now knows who to contact with different specific questions (other than Vice President for Student Life Dr. Celestino Limas).
“I think there are a lot of people that work at the College that students don’t really have access to or they don’t know they have access to, and I think it’s something that is kind of a barrier,” Greiner said.
Greiner’s idea that she shared in her application to the program was expanding the new student orientation, where students would be encouraged to not only set and complete goals, but set goals and return to them later. She wanted to promote more connectivity within the campus and provide extended support for both incoming first-year and transfer students.
“When I came in as a freshman, I felt like the first week of orientation I was surrounded by open arms and everybody was kind of in the same situation as me,” Greiner explained. “After that first semester, I kind of felt lost. If that consistency was continued, it would be very helpful for students.”
While Greiner took on the task of being Etown’s president, McCormick spent the day in the shoes of the students, and she was excited for the classes and to interact with students. She started her day in a sales marketing class where she partook in a case study about how businesses such as UberEats and DoorDash are thriving during COVID-19. After class, she went to the Bowers Center for Sports, Fitness and Well-being and then visited the athletic coaches.
After lunch, however, McCormick’s schedule was light because her two afternoon classes were cancelled. Additionally, if Greiner was still on the volleyball team, she would have attended practice for that as well. The rest of her day included the President for a Day presentation on the patio of the Brossman Commons and dinner at the President’s House.
“Maybe I’ve decided she’s not busy enough, so I’ve decided to add an additional major to her classes,” McCormick joked about Greiner’s schedule.
Additionally, McCormick ate lunch with Greiner’s friends senior biology major Rileigh Hudock and junior political science major John D’Amico after her visit to the athletic coaches. They discussed many different topics at lunch, including what they would change about Etown.
“John said he would like to have a slide, and I said we could probably arrange to have a blow-up one at TGIS,” McCormick laughed. “Rileigh decided we should fix the volleyball courts over at the Bowers [Center].”
“Initially I was really nervous to talk to President McCormick because I was worried I was going to run out of things to say or I was going to act standoffish,” Hudock said in an email. “However, she ended up being very easy to talk to and the conversation never became dull! She was very personable and I really enjoyed talking to her.”
McCormick hopes to make this program and Etown tradition and continue it in the future because all of the students who applied had great ideas. These thoughts help the administration continue to be a service to all Etown students.
“It’s a chance for the school to spend a day having a little bit of fun, but there’s also some seriousness with it as well,” McCormick said. “It’s been fully embraced by those involved.”
