Day in the life | Orientation leader

If he has to get up for an 8 a.m. class when the fall semester begins, Ti Grant will have had plenty of practice during his summer break. The summer orientation leader at UNC-Chapel Hill sets his alarm for 6 a.m. to make sure he is in place for his 7:30 a.m. meetings with his colleagues. On many days, it’s nearly 10 p.m. by the time he finishes introducing Carolina to the groups of incoming students he leads.

Grant wouldn’t want it any other way.

“I think about what I’m doing it for, mainly, when I get tired,” said Grant, an exercise and sports science major in the College of Arts and Sciences. “I’m only here for the students. Whether it be from resources or the research they’re thinking about partaking in or just the friend that they meet at orientation, I hope the students find something to connect to Carolina.”

Throughout the summer, incoming students come to orientation, organized by Carolina’s office of New Student and Family Programs, to get ready for the fall. Orientation leaders like Grant lead the students in activities ranging from skits about campus life and service projects to course registration and small group sessions.

While the days can be long, Grant is following in the footsteps of the orientation leader who introduced him to Carolina two summers ago.

“It’s kind of like a ‘pay it forward’ type of deal,” he said. “Somebody else did something for you way back when, but now it’s your time to kind of pay it forward and guide somebody else.”