Naomi Jackson, a junior music education and German major at Andrews University, has found Andrews to be full of opportunities. She says, “I take pride in attending a school that encourages me to stretch my borders.” Throughout college, Naomi has been an active student on campus. She has served as a resident advisor in Lamson Hall, which allowed her to work with a diverse group of women. Naomi says this experience helped her “relate to different cultures and personalities” as well as made her “aware of what quality leaders need to do to run a program with 500 people living under one roof.”

Naomi grew up in Northern California, but moved to Berrien Springs in time to begin her sophomore year at Andrews Academy. She is passionate about Austrian and German cultures. Naomi enjoys spending time studying German grammar and literature and reading from her Luther Bible. After graduation, she hopes to teach music and German on the secondary level and would enjoy teaching ESL (English as a Second Language) classes in a German-speaking country.

As a music education major, Naomi spends a lot of time in the music department where she is constantly reminded of the relationship between music and worship. She says, “I must always be conscious of how music affects my worship and witnessing experience.” She is grateful to her teachers who “foster such thinking and do not shy away from discussion.”

Junior biophysics major, Paul Wright, has maintained a busy schedule throughout his college career. In addition to his difficult classes, he has participated in intramural sports, Higher Ground Sabbath school, and has been an active member of the honors society. This year, Paul served as the social recreation director and student services director for the Andrews University Student Association. He has enjoyed taking part in student government because it “has allowed a backstage view of how things run throughout the campus.”

Paul is a Michigan native and spent his high school years at Great Lakes Adventist Academy. He plans to attend Loma Linda University School of Medicine after graduation. He also looks forward to his upcoming wedding this July.

Paul says the professors at Andrews have had a profound effect on him. “Working and attending classes in the science complex has allowed me to meet and get to know some excellent professors [who] truly care about the success of their students. I think their tutelage has well prepared me for future academic and professional endeavors, and through our interactions I have gained several great friends for life.”