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Quinn Gillespie joined the International Rescue and Relief Outdoors Club (IRROC) for the hiking. An elementary education major from Medford, Oregon, she grew up surrounded by the mountains and forests of the Pacific Northwest. Coming to Lincoln, Nebraska, she was excited to find a club on campus filled with people who love hiking as much as she does. And when the group ended up trekking through a farmer’s field rather than a state park? It never occurred to her that they had taken a wrong turn. “I just thought, Wow! This is so Nebraska!” she said. “I never expected to be backpacking through cornfields, but it was so fun because I got to know a bunch of people I never would have made connections with if I hadn’t gone.” 

As Gillespie thinks back on her years at Union, many of her favorite memories are of times others might not recall as fondly. They feature deceased goldfish, long roadtrips, and trying to get glitter out of a friend’s eye. But through them all, one theme emerges: it’s not the activity that matters; it’s the bonds forged through shared experiences. 

Even when describing one of her favorite teachers, Dr. Ben Holdsworth, professor emeritus of religion, it isn’t the subject matter or grades she focuses on, but the way he modeled connecting with students. “In a big class with a bunch of people, he would specifically point out to us how something applies to our career,” she said. “He’s super intentional about remembering every student’s goals.”

Gillespie says she thought her mom was joking when she suggested applying to a college in Nebraska. After a campus tour and learning more about Union’s Education Program, she went home not only certain she’d found the right school for her, she also convinced a friend to join her. 

As she finishes her student teaching, she is even more confident in the quality of Union’s Education Program. “They have done a fantastic job,” she said. “My freshman year I was freaking out. I thought there is no way that at the end of these four years I can go into a classroom and enjoy it. But we spent so much observation time and practicum time that by the first day of student teaching, I wasn’t even nervous.”

Next year, she will be putting her classroom management skills to work teaching third and fourth grades at Manassas Adventist Preparatory School in Virginia. Having already moved halfway across the country for college, she wasn’t excited about the idea of working on the East Coast. However, when both a friend and a professor separately told her to apply for the job, it seemed like more than a coincidence. In less than 12 hours from when she submitted her application, the school had already booked a flight for her to come interview in person. 

Since her freshman year, Gillespie has worked for Union’s Guest Services, and her smiling face welcomes visitors to campus from the Ortner Center front desk. Having given many campus tours and greeted many lost new students, she has a lot of advice to give incoming freshmen. 

“Trust the process,” she said. “By the time you finish college, you’ll be a completely different person. Someone told me that before I went into college, and I thought, there’s no way, but I am. Just trust the process and know that God is working in all things. He’s going to shape you into who you need to be.”

She also suggests students join a club that’s not related to their major, as IRROC has been for her. “It was really fun, and I also got to hang out with people who aren’t in my classes,” she said. “I made friends who I may never have spoken to otherwise.”

Another recommendation is to ask a favorite professor to be a spiritual mentor. “By the time I started HeartScan with Dr. Byers, I had finished taking classes from her,” Gillespie said. “Instead of never getting to see her, we would meet and color together while we talked about life and God.”

And last, but not least, she encourages everyone to get to know Ryan and Tawnya Teller who regularly opened their home to her and many other students for Sabbath lunch. “I found really great mentors in the Tellers, and I’ve never had bad food at their house,” she said. “I love them. They’re amazing. I will rave about the Tellers forever.”