Confessions of a First Time GAer

“General Assembly” sounds like a formal meeting held in a stuffy boardroom with boring executives, right? NOPE. It is a life changing experience that is anything but boring.

This year, The BACCHUS Initiatives of NASPA General Assembly (also known as GA) fell right before Thanksgiving. My school goes from Labor Day to Thanksgiving with no breaks, so I showed up to GA sleep deprived, overcaffeinated, and ready for turkey. I expected the conference to be great, but I truthfully anticipated my participation to be, well, lackluster. I was tired, okay?

My attitude changed nearly the moment I arrived in Kansas City. The energy I felt the moment I saw the BACCHUS staff and the other SAC members was contagious, and it carried me through the entire weekend. The days were packed full of speakers, networking with other peer educators and collecting conference ribbons, and I loved every minute of it.

Peer education is tricky. It is so easy to fall into a rut of putting on the same programs, the same tabling events, week after week. Events like spring conferences and General Assembly do something incredible -- they place the best of the best into the same space for three days. The most passionate peer educators, the most knowledgeable advisors, and the most inspiring speakers are all there, together, working to make the world a better place through peer education.

After a long but exciting day of conference, some of the SAC and I decided we would venture out of the hotel and go ice skating at a nearby rink. I am quite possibly the least coordinated person you will ever meet, and I started off gripping onto the side railing for dear life. I began to reflect on the conference and all of the things I had learned. I was incredibly motivated to take the ideas I had back to campus, but more importantly I had begun to realize my potential. The speakers had taught me so much about leadership and confidence -- I COULD DO ANYTHING! Did I want to climb Mt. Everest? Well, no, but I could if I wanted…

As I reflected on that potential, I realized that I was no longer holding on to the side of the rink. I was doing it, even if I was inching along. But you know what? I didn’t fall! And it was FUN!

As I digest my last piece of turkey and begin the familiar trek back towards my campus, I hold on to the lessons of General Assembly -- the energy, the excitement, and, most of all, the inspiration. My friends, we can change the world. Let’s go!