Student Ambassador spotlight: Avery Johnson
Avery Johnson is probably one of the busiest Wildcats on campus.
Whether she’s on her way to class, attending a K-State Student Alumni Board meeting,
or catching a football game at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, Johnson bleeds purple from
sunup to sundown.
Everyone who knows her knows how much she loves K-State — and that’s what makes her
a perfect K-State Student Ambassador.
Every year, two K-State Student Ambassadors are elected to represent the student body at K-State Alumni Association events throughout
the state and at university activities, in addition to serving on Student Alumni Board
and the Homecoming Student Committee.
We’d love to help you get to know Johnson better; but instead of us doing the talking,
we recruited fellow Student Ambassador Andrew Bergmeier to ask her several questions
about her K-State experience:
Bergmeier: What would your ideal day be in Manhattan, Kansas?
Johnson: My ideal day would center around the most important thing to me at Kansas
State University: the people. First, I would attend an 11 a.m. game at Bill Snyder
Family Stadium, where I would catch up with friends, watch my favorite team win, and
even hear my name announced repeatedly for each running touchdown, all successes that
I cannot take personal credit for, but sharing the same name with the K-State quarterback
is still pretty cool.
Next, I would head down to Taco Lucha to split a famous raspberry black bean dip with
my favorite people to celebrate such a fantastic win. Lastly, I would end the night
by heading to Call Hall with my family for a Purple Pride ice cream scoop. As a third-generation
K-Stater, my family has had the opportunity to experience K-State at very different
times. However, when we sit together and share stories about current and past experiences
at K-State, we stay true to the same idea that the people are what made this place
home for not only four years but the rest of our lives.
As a Student Ambassador, what has been your favorite experience?
Every K-Stater has a reason for choosing K-State as their place to receive higher
education, create lifelong memories, find out who they are and who they want to become,
accomplish goals and dreams that at one time seemed impossible, and most importantly,
to become a part of a family that will support and cherish them for a lifetime.
K-State Alumni Association events give me an opportunity to connect with past, present
and future K-Staters; from hearing stories of how lifelong marriages started with
a shared class in Seaton Hall, to seeing perspective students beam with excitement
at the idea of writing their own K-State stories, to watching current students receive
nationally recognized accolades. Truly understanding each person's K-State experience
has been my absolute favorite part of being a Student Ambassador. No two experiences
are the same, but every K-State story follows the same script of connecting like-minded
individuals for lifetime relationships, unending care and support provided by K-State
staff from all corners of campus, and the opportunity to create the life you have
always envisioned for yourself.
What is something that you want to accomplish in your last year at K-State?
Student Alumni Board is the student branch of the K-State Alumni Association. This
board of 35 K-State students works endlessly to create lifelong relationships between
current students and the Alumni Association. K-State alumni set our university apart
from similar institutions; from active mentorship relationships, to providing unbelievable
job opportunities to new graduates, and actively being why thousands of current K-State
students can receive higher education, our alumni do it all.
Wildcats Forever is the membership that allows students to join the Student Alumni
Association. With this membership, K-State students are able to receive access to
many deals, opportunities and events. Giving students the opportunity to give back
to the university that does so much for so many is vital to the Student Alumni Board's
role.
In the next year, I hope to foster relationships between current students and the
K-State Alumni Association through Wildcats Forever so students are connected to the
impeccable network of our alumni. Our students are our greatest resource, and we hope
that when the time comes, they will be able to provide these same opportunities for
the next generation of K-Staters.
What do you believe sets K-State apart?
Beyond the Wabash Cannonball, flying the purple and white colors, and, of course, Willie the Wildcat, my personal choice of K-State was centered around feelings of cohesiveness, devotion and creative adventures. Furthermore, what sets K-State apart is the ever-lasting tranquility and peacefulness that come from the historic limestone buildings on campus. The interactions between students while walking on campus also display a unique culture to me. The peers and faculty of K-State go out of their way to make everyone feel comfortable and part of the K-State family. The underlying and ultimate goal of the educational experience at K-State is to set students up for life beyond the university; that's what sets K-State apart from other universities.