You Can B Adaptable - Harrison Weiss ('22)

You Can Be Adaptable - Harrison Weiss ('22, CIS Major and Economics Minor)

Harrison Weiss didn’t come into college with a clear plan of what degree he was going to pursue or what organizations he was going to join. He only knew he had to be open-minded in order to make the most of his college experience. 

Currently a junior, Harrison’s ambitious personality and openness have encouraged him to join many organizations here at Bentley. He is the Vice President of the Bentley Open-Market Committee, the Organization Management Chair for the Student Government Association (SGA), and has two on-campus jobs: a tutor for the CIS Sandbox, and an Information Technology Specialist for the New Student Program Staff. Aside from these impressive involvements, he is also a student advocate for the Junior Class Cabinet, a general member of the Curriculum Redesign Student Advisory Board, the Programming Club, Hillel, the Ski and Snowboard Club, and a Co-Leader for Bentley Nest.

“Nothing is guaranteed – don’t take anything for granted.”

Being as involved as Harrison requires a lot of organization, passion, and hard work. And in 2020, a year with so much unprecedented change, it also requires adaptability. One of the extracurriculars that Harrison is most passionate about is the Orientation Team, which has been drastically impacted by the pandemic.

Orientation is a pivotal time for freshmen to get adjusted to campus and begin making friends. These “baby falcons” are encouraged to be vulnerable with each other and truly connect with the other members of their orientation group. Since most of orientation had to be online this summer, the members of the orientation team had to be extremely creative to find fun and engaging ways to teach their baby falcons about Bentley and connect with them. Harrison, as a Program Coordinator, bore a lot of responsibility during this process. After a lot of hard work this summer, the Orientation Team drafted a new, innovative plan. The orientation groups met with each other over Zoom to get to know one another, and the Orientation Leaders met with each of their baby falcons one on one to check in and get to know them personally. 

After planning a successful orientation, Harrison was ready to tackle all of his organizations this semester during the “new normal”. His work over the summer taught him that to be a leader, you must be ready to take on anything. He learned the importance of being flexible and creative, applying these skills to all his involvements. The skills he learned during the pandemic, paired with his eager attitude will be sure to show him success after graduation.

“If I had any advice to give to incoming freshman, it would be to get involved!”

Harrison’s many involvements have shaped his Bentley experience entirely. The friendships he has made and the experience he has gained through all his extracurriculars are what make Bentley so special to him. It taught him to be more compassionate and understanding as  meeting different people with different backgrounds has expanded his perspective immensely. His fondest memories of Bentley will be the time spent with his peers in these organizations, and he encourages other students to get as involved as they can so they too can find their people.

Harrison’s involvements and responsibilities within them are always subject to change. These organizations have taught him to always be alert and aware of the world evolving around him. Though at times this can be a little overwhelming, Harrison would not trade his experiences from these organizations for anything, for the friendships he has made through them have made Bentley such a special place to him. Being involved has further taught him the importance of being a flexible, adaptable person, who is open to anything.