During the first week of the semester, freshmen and returning students meet each other for the first time over meals in the Great Hall. Across dozens of tables and new introductions, a question that comes up often is, “How did you hear about Covenant?” For a college on top of a mountain straddling Georgia and Tennessee that is home to students from all over the world, there’s always an interesting answer. In many answers given, the impact of Covenant’s community— exceeding the boundaries of halls, dorms, classrooms, and campus— becomes obvious.

Tracing the ripple-effect of students’ stories often leads back to people who care deeply about Covenant or have seen its impression on others. Covenant has been so impactful on people that even students like me, who came from over 600 miles away, heard about it through personal connections. Although I knew some Covenant alumni, it was during high school that my youth pastor, Brad Lucht, a graduate of Covenant Theological Seminary, mentioned Covenant College in passing. This small, seemingly inconsequential conversation eventually led to my decision to come to Covenant, and as I followed my story back to where it started, I was amazed to find out that President Brad Voyles was previously the youth pastor for my youth pastor, Brad Lucht. The echoes of Covenant throughout my story of coming to this mountaintop are not an uncommon occurrence in many students’ lives.

Church Impact

For many students, their church community is their introduction to Covenant. Emily Voss, a junior from Chicago, first heard about the college through her church, Covenant OPC in Orlando Park, IL, because it supports Covenant. However, this alone wasn’t the deciding factor that led her to apply to Covenant. During Emily’s senior year, her grandparents were the ones who first visited the campus while in Chattanooga for a wedding. It must have been a good visit because, soon after, they texted her about the beautiful campus, encouraging her to check it out. Emily eventually felt led to attend Covenant due to their encouragement, though she had originally heard about it from her church.

Ethan MacCaughelty, a freshman, was most influenced by his pastor’s wife who talked about how much she loved Covenant as an alumni. “I had known about Covenant since middle school when I came to a summer camp, the Edge, for a couple of summers—I actually became a Christian in the chapel on campus,” Ethan recalls. “But, I was also influenced by my pastor’s wife who only ever told me good things about student life and how much the professors and faculty care about every single student.” Ethan’s decision to come to Covenant has been impactful because of his prior experience on campus: “I have an attachment to Covenant since I accepted Jesus in the same chapel I get to be in three days a week.”

Often, stories and encouragement from familiar faces lead a student to consider Covenant as a serious option, but then a church member says something that seals the deal. For example, senior Seth Bergeron heard about Covenant in 2013 when his older brother was searching for colleges, but to Seth, this was not the biggest part of his final decision to attend Covenant. “More relevant to my decision was finding out that a pastor friend of the family and his wife had graduated from Covenant in the 2000s,” Seth explains. This connection led him to apply and then visit over scholarship weekend, during which he “fell in love with Covenant.” Seth’s decision was not made because of a single person convincing him, but because of a string of connections that eventually led him to his visit, which was the deciding factor.

While Emily heard about Covenant through her church but made her decision due to her grandparents’ encouragement, both Seth and Ethan were led to the college through connections in their churches. However, the church is not the only point of community to which Covenant extends.

Alumni Stories

One of the closest forms of community is alumni, especially alumni who are family members. The campus is filled with second-, third-, and even fourth- generation students, siblings of graduates, and others with family members who have been impacted by Covenant. Stories have been passed down through family and friends, professors have seen two generations in their classrooms, spouses have met during campus events, and deep friendships have formed in residence halls.

Cody Goertemiller, a junior whose mother and siblings attended Covenant, heard stories of their time at school throughout his life. “I think my mom told me stories about her time at Covenant because she wanted me to know how great of a school it is and how much it helped her grow her faith. It definitely impacted my decision to come here because I have heard so many good things, and not just from my mom,” Cody says, “but also from my aunts and uncles who came here.” Cody grew up enjoying the stories of people close to him who had graduated from Covenant so much so that he chose to come make his own memories.

Though family and alumni can have a big influence, they are often just a window of opportunity for a student. Junior Hannah Oosting is also the child of an alumna. Even though her mom graduated from and loved Covenant, Hannah didn’t immediately consider Covenant. However, because her mom is a guidance counselor, Hannah had tagged along to visit campus multiple times, and Covenant ended up making her top two schools. After that, “It was nothing but open doors to Covenant,” says Hannah.

Many current students and recent alumni have influenced their peers to consider Covenant through conversation. For Emma Nottingham, a senior, it wasn’t a parent, pastor, or grandparent that first led her to Covenant. “There’s a warm group of people where I’m from in Indianapolis who attend Covenant. One of them was a girl I grew up with who just graduated. She told me about Covenant and pushed me to come visit,” says Emma. Her visit then led her to sit in on a class with Dr. Lance Wescher who, according to Emma, was one of the driving forces in helping her transfer to Covenant. Emma’s story, like many, also consists of a series of people closely connected to Covenant who were important in her decision.

The Educator's Voice

Outside the church and alumni, an influential role in many students’ lives is an educator who they look respect or admire. Sandy (Gillen) Snuggs is a guidance counselor at Evangel Christian School in Alabaster, Alabama, and a 1983 Covenant grad who has played a role in students’ lives—one student being Ethan MacCaughelty. “As students consider their post-school plans, it is my privilege as a high school guidance counselor to talk to them about Covenant,” says Sandy. “When discussing college options, many students focus on cost and scholarship potential,” she explains, “But when I ask about their vision for their lives and hopes for college, it often opens the doors to tell them about Covenant.” Sandy feels as though Covenant’s values are important for students to consider.

As these stories are traced back to family members, pastors, alumni, and educators—like Sandy Snuggs—there is a trend that Covenant extends to other areas of their lives. Sandy Snugg’s husband, two of her children, a daughter- in-law, and one of her closest friends are all also graduates of Covenant, so the college is important to all of her family.

“I continue to talk about Covenant because it is the instrument God used to show me that I’m made in His image and His world is a glorious, exciting adventure where He is revealed everywhere,” she says. “Covenant continues to be true to its mission, welcoming new students and alumni and fostering growth, authenticity, love, and joy.”

Throughout students’ stories, their ties to Covenant speak to an important element of the college decision. Just as the community is a huge part of student life on campus, a community outside of campus also plays a role in students joining this campus community. As people talk about what they love, their excitement has an effect, so in this way, the Covenant community spreads like ripples out from the mountain. These are the stories that we hear in the Great Hall. Maybe next year there will be new stories exchanged about students who came because someone read this piece and decided to tell a friend, family member, student, or church member about this wonderful college on the mountain.

Know someone who you think would thrive at Covenant? Fill out our Refer a Scot form at tsunoi-toso.com/referascot.

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