Written by Logan Schultz
LAKELAND, FL, Dec 8, 2025 – Many students define Florida Southern College by its close communities, but for some that sense of belonging isn’t found immediately. It’s discovered through clubs, friendships and moments that push them outside their comfort zones.
Fourth-year student Jacob McDougald grew up in a family of six children who were all homeschooled, forming a small, connected community in their Maryland household. He explained how his lifetime of homeschooling and family dynamic led him to a college in Lakeland, FL.
“Growing up, I was always in a smaller community,” McDougald said. “I mean I was home schooled my whole life so it was very tight-knit, so [FSC’s community] felt familiar.” When finding these groups to spend your time with, he spoke on the value of giving everyone a chance, no matter what first impressions may be. “I’ve found myself surrounded by people that originally I would have never seen myself being in a circle with, and because I’ve been able to step outside my comfort zone and join in some of those communities and just interact with some people, it’s led to some of the best moments that I can remember of my entire life,” McDougald said.
His biggest step outside his comfort zone was joining Greek life. While he is now a brother of Theta Chi, he never would have thought that would happen until he started meeting more and more people he connected with around campus. Starting with intramural sports, he began to branch out to various other campus events and connected with his future brothers in unexpected ways. He spoke of connections he has made with people in his fraternity that he can see lasting the rest of his life, which makes him cherish this community even more.
“That was something that was so far from my mind when I first got here,” McDougald said. “I was actually kind of mad that I was getting along with the people as well as I did to the point that I was considering even rushing… It’s been probably the greatest decision I’ve made in college.”
McDougald came into higher education very driven to make his time in college worthwhile. In his mind, he explained, he was paying to study here, so he already belonged here. For him, it was just a matter of time until he found the group that he connected with. Not every student comes in with the same optimism and determination though.
“So my first week here, I had a miserable time,” fourth-year FSC student Sidney Zhao said. “I was honestly so sad…it was the Thursday [after classes had started] and I was doing laundry and I was like, ‘I have no friends here.’ I was so lonely.”
Crying and walking around the neighboring Lake Hollingsworth, Zhao called her brother who was back home in Chicago. Comforting her with a soft reminder that she had been there for less than a week, he advised spending the following week seeking out some activities or clubs to make some friends. The following Monday, she attended her first meeting of the Asian and Pacific Islander Student Association.
APISA has been one of the most important parts of Zhao’s college career. The first-generation American expressed how finding a community of people who looked like her and shared cultural experiences with her made all the difference in her life. “I felt really welcomed in APISA… I needed people that I feel like wouldn’t really judge me or that I had to impress in some way,” Zhao said.
Since then, Zhao has risen through the ranks and is now President of the organization. Hosting several events per semester that highlight various Asian holidays and celebrations, APISA provides a sense of belonging and acceptance for students of various backgrounds. The club is open to people of all backgrounds and promotes acceptance and curiosity in all manners, even if you have not been a previous participant in the highlighted cultures.
Campus Ministries is another large contributor to the greater sense of community many experience on the Florida Southern campus. The Fannin Center is the hub for all things religion and spiritualism at FSC, though many of the events held there are meant to cultivate a sense of belonging on the campus for all students regardless of religious affiliation.
One of their most popular weekly events is The Table, which provides free dinner for attendees, and is always prefaced with a positive, motivational speech from FSC Chaplain Tim Wright and a quick prayer from Assistant Chaplain Wyatt Robinson. Robinson plays a large part in planning the events many engage with the community that surrounds Campus Ministries, and he spoke on how many different kinds of people come to The Table every week, from different majors to different nationalities.
“We’ve got people who are just looking for a community outside of the classroom,” Robinson said. “A really diverse cross section of our campus… You see a lot of different people, you don’t feel like you have to be one type of person to be at The Table, I think that’s something that makes it really special. People can come and sort of be their authentic selves with that diversity that we have here.”
Robinson has a unique perspective among the FSC faculty as a former student at the college himself. Having graduated in 2018 and returning as a staff member years later in 2022, Robinson noted the progress the college has made in that time. The adaptation of the school’s rich traditions for current students’ modern needs was one of the elements of the school’s work toward building community that Robinson appreciated most.
Kindness Week, an initiative Robinson conceived years ago, is annually hosted campus-wide to promote compassion and acceptance. Robinson explained the initiative embodies a core value of community that the Fannin Center strives for: creating a culture of belonging and kindness. The goal of this community effort is to promote the ability to be one’s authentic self and be met with kindness.
“It’s a really valuable thing to find in a community and it’s something we want to share with students because we know you’re not going to be here on our campus forever,” Robinson said. “We want our students to go out and create those cultures of kindness everywhere they go. That’s the type of change agent we want our students to be in the world.”
When assessing how community affects and is affected by college students, there is an inescapable caveat: these students will not be in college forever. They will earn course credits, earn their degrees, and move on from college life. Where the campus community comes in is making that formative time in life one of positivity, acceptance, and belonging.
As Tim Wright pointed out in his Kindness Week speech at The Table, being kind is free and can make a tremendous difference in people’s lives. Whether it comes in the form of cultural clubs, Greek life or spiritual groups, there are outlets in which FSC students may find a sense of belonging that enhances their college experience and nurtures them into full adulthood.