Lucy Burns’ advice for first-year undergraduate students is simple: get out of your dorm room.

Before Burns toured Northern Kentucky University’s campus as a high school senior, she had never even heard of the Norse. Growing up in Murray, Kentucky, she knew she wanted to go a bit further from home to find more opportunity, and when she came to NKU’s campus, she realized it had everything she was looking for.

“At NKU, I realized there was so much opportunity, and I never knew how close it was to Cincinnati,” she says. “Everyone is clamoring for you to be involved. There’s Greek Life, clubs, honor societies, research; there’s even jobs you can work at the university. There’s just so much to be involved in and so much potential.”

That’s why Burns says it’s important for first-year students to put themselves out there and do as much as they can on campus before they graduate.

“So often I hear people say they regret not getting involved, so get out of your dorm room,” she says. “Try something, and if you don’t think you can do it, find someone who knows how and ask them to teach you. I know it’s awkward, but life is awkward, and you just have to get out of your shell and try things because there is no time to waste in college.”

Now that she’s tried everything from Greek Life and student government to Honors College classes and student mentorships, Burns describes her four-year experience at NKU as transformative.

“NKU absolutely rocked my world,” she says. “The campus has an overall focus on personal mentorship and developing students outside of the classroom. I’ve had so many mentors like my faculty mentor, my Greek Life advisors and my student government advisors. There’s just so much desire from the campus community to pour into people and help them grow.”

One person she credits with helping her grow is environmental sciences professor Dr. Allison Parker. Burns says Dr. Parker is the type of professor that takes the time to understand her students on an individual basis. She helps them narrow their focus by thinking about the road ahead and turning ideas into a step-by-step plan. For Burns, the road ahead involves channeling her talents to continue her passion: making the world a better place.

“It may sound cliché, but I just want to make the environment around me and the people around me better,” she says. “It’s so rewarding just to be able to share ideas and then help people find the tools they need to make it happen. There’s always so much potential to improve, and I love taking something that might not have been at its best and making it into everything it can be.”

After graduation, Burns is looking forward to using her Bachelor of Arts degree in environmental science and integrative studies, with focuses in urban stability, political science, business management and public service, to find a job where she can work to better her surroundings and experience financial freedom and stability.

“Now that I’m actually going to have a degree, it’s like we ran the race and we’ve reached the top of the hill,” she says. “The possibilities are endless from here. It’s very gratifying. It’s like the end of an era.”