As we bring this year to a close, there have been a number of lessons that the class of 2018 has learned. These lessons have helped them to grow into the Amazing Senior Class that they are today and this is why the rest of us look up to them so much. As a farewell, two seniors have left messages for us all to grow from. Read their words, take them in, and use them as fertilizer to encourage your own growth as you continue to matriculate through UNC.
Dear Qieara Nicole Lesesne,
Ever since I first met you, I’ve been enamored by your passion and grit to put in the work for our organization. Over the course of next year, you are going to learn so much about yourself and about others, and I cannot wait to see how you will grow in this position as President. As I prepare my exit for adulthood, I wanted to write you a piece with some of my greatest takeaways, lessons, and tokens I wish I would’ve known coming into this position.
Leadership is isolating. Many people will never understand the toll this position has on you– mentally, physically, academically, socially; you name it. It is a lot, and often times you will feel that you are going through it alone. You are not alone. You are standing on the shoulders of the giants who have come before you, and are still in your corner supporting you. Reach out when you need to. Surround yourself with people whose intentions are pure and want to see you/BSM do well. And lastly, you need to rest. You cannot pour from an empty cup.
You will not change the entire culture of the black community. No matter how hard you push, you will not move all the mountains you wish to move. But push anyway. Move what you can move. Start what you can start. Use what you can to do what you can– leave the rest to God and to a good team that can carry it through to BSM’s 52nd year.
There were many times that, for whatever reason, I thought I was not worthy to be in this position. You are worthy, you are deserving, and you have been chosen. No matter how tough it gets, you must lean to those to your left and your right to continue pushing forward.
Know that while eyes are looking to you for answers, you do not have to have it all figured out. Part of being in a position of leadership is learning. If you talk more than you listen, then you’re doing it wrong. Think before you speak. Run ideas by your team. Be confident in saying, “I don’t know, but we will work it out.”
Never ever lose touch with your community. The black community is diverse. There is no one black student in black UNC. Connect with your community– even the ones you wouldn’t normally talk to. Go out of your way to get to know as many people you can. Understand what UNC means to them/how we can remove barriers that will better achieve a UNC for all.
I can barely finish this letter due to a stream of tears, but Qieara, I am so proud of you. I am proud that this year, you became like family to me, and we were able to move BSM in the right direction. Keep that momentum. BSM is a light in our community– and the organization only works because people like you make it work. The torch is yours, ma’am, and I am so fortunate to turn it over to you.
My love and my best,
Aaron Epps
The 50th President of the Black Student Movement
Dear Black UNC,
My admissions essay to UNC was written on a concept of L.O.V.E. This acronym was tasked with encouraging others to live in better harmony by doing these four things: Listen, Observe, Value, & Embrace. Each aspect represented a pillar to successful relationship building. In a world full of diverse people, these four things have guided me through the darkest of times. I entered Carolina with the impression that this message was something that needed to be radiated throughout the world to build understanding among people. Little did I know, this call to action would become the reference point for me to love myself more than ever before. This was “my proverbial pot of gold on the other side of the rainbow” (Grier UNC Admissions Essay 2014).
Listen. (First-Year) From being denied membership into the Theta Omicron Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. because of suspicions that I was a discrete member of the LGBTQIA+ community due to a false rumor spread by a peer, to coping with the trauma of being sexually assaulted as a child by a man, accepting myself became a struggle unmatched. My first-year, I envisioned crossing those burning sands but I knew, if it were to be it would be God’s doing. I know this to be true because of the “Khronic Kase” of misfortune I endured throughout my time as an Undergrad. Homophobic rhetoric on a Quasi-Liberal Campus made me understand that if I wanted to make a difference from the inside, I must not speak of the confusion I faced with my sexuality. Though, I am disappointed that it took me this long as I watched others secure their personal liberations; I am running my race and ONLY my race.
Observe. (Sophomore Year) I knew after dealing with the sexual assault from my sophomore year of high school, there was still so much work to be done. I learned very quickly through Psych 101 how to assess signs of depression, realizing that I was falling. It is by the grace of God that I did not take my life back then in Florence, Italy (Blacks Abroad). Observing oneself and others highlights the importance of nonverbal cues. Observation is something we often omit because we assume that people will speak when something is wrong but as I have learned, mental health can be a silent killer. It almost took me; It took Demitri Allison (Elon Football Player, Morrison Dorm Suicide Fall 2015). He was my cousin. UNC became a place of lost hopes and dreams that year. I was crawling to survive and when I was at my lowest, God carried me, using my best friend Basil Agard as a vessel (I love you Base).
Value. (Junior Year) I began discovering myself. My thoughts became clear and I remembered who I was the following year. Originally setting my sights high on being the Student Body President to spread this message of LOVE from my first-year, I decided that I was still committed. Despite my reputation being ruined because of false rumors to cover up why aforementioned groups denied me, I was convinced by my peers that my love for the student body was enough; it wasn’t. I lost the race by a margin of ~250 votes (2/6). I wasn’t ready.
Embrace. (Senior Year) I had to embrace myself before I could really consider leading a body of people. This has been my largest growing point, and its delay, my largest hindrance. I share this story with you all, hoping that this message of L.O.V.E. still radiates. This time, it’s about self-love. Your life was meant to be fulfilling and full of joy. Nothing should stand in the way of that. Carolina is a special place. It is a place of heartache and joy. It is a place for hating Duke and rushing Franklin. Most importantly, for many, it has also been a place of further depression and anxiety. I was one of those people. The solution is cookie-cutter: focus on you. My journey has been nothing short of amazing. This week I “Kame Out” to my family and to you. This is the impact I did not foresee and I am forever grateful.
With L.O.V.E,
Maurice J. Grier
Student Body President Runner-Up | UNC Class of 2018
