Take a moment to get to know Chase Kroner, the 2022-23 New Student & Family Programs Family Assistant.

Tell us about yourself.  A little bit about me…I am from Moberly Missouri, which is a small town right outside of Columbia. My major is history education, I would like to be a high school history teacher and eventually go back to school for my master’s degree in administration.

I have one older sister who is a nurse and is like my best friend. Some of my hobbies include going on walks in the park, taking care of my many house plants, cooking Pinterest recipes, and watching WWII documentaries.   

You were a SOAR leader this past summer. Why did you apply to be a SOAR Leader? What did you learn from being a SOAR Leader? I applied to be a SOAR leader because being an education major, I thought that it would look good on a resume as well as be great leadership experience for me. But after being a SOAR leader for just one summer I have learned there are so many resources and opportunities for students on campus.

I had not realized how many ways students could get involved and how many resources there were on campus to help students succeed. I would highly recommend to every student to apply to be a SOAR leader as it is a great opportunity to build connections on campus and also make some amazing friends. 

What is your favorite tradition at Missouri State? Why? My favorite tradition at Missouri State is Fountain Day in the Spring semester. Fountain Day is my favorite tradition because it’s one of the first activities of the new year outside where we can enjoy the nice weather. And the tables by the fountain are my favorite study spot and studying by the fountain is way more relaxing when the fountain is on. 

You are the new Family Assistant for the New Student and Family Programs Office. Why did you apply for this position? What are you looking forward to in this new role? The reason that I applied to the Family Assistant position is because I saw how big of a difference SOAR leaders make in the student’s transition to being a student here at Missouri State. I thought that it would be a great opportunity to continue to work with students and families throughout the school year and plan for the SOAR sessions during the summer of 2023. I am very excited to hold this position and cannot wait for the upcoming year. 

What advice would you share with family members to help them help their student be successful at Missouri State?  Advice that I would share with family members to help them help their students be successful here at Missouri State would to be supportive of them. Transitioning into college is a very scary and stressful time for students, they are starting new classes, making new friends, and getting acclimated to campus.

Be sure to let them know how proud you are of them because words of affirmation can go a long way. Be sure to set aside time to call them on the weekends and make sure that when they come home that you spend quality time together even if it is just having dinner together. 

What was the hardest transition for you when you started college? How did you handle the transition?  The hardest transition for me when starting college was being so far away from home. For the first couple of weeks, I really struggled being away from my family and friends. But the best way that I found to help make this transition easier was to get involved on campus.

Going to the welcome week events and making friends on campus helped make Missouri State feel like my new home. I also found that calling my parents when I felt homesick helped because it helped me feel as if I was still at home with them. 

Why do you think involvement is important for students? How do you recommend students get involved on campus?  Involvement is important for students because it is a great way to make connections on campus. Getting involved on campus is a great social outlet and a great way to make friends with similar interests.

Not only does it give you something fun to look forward to after class, but it is also a great way to relieve stress from school. The best way to get involved is to go to the activities fair right after freshman convocation where all of the student organizations and clubs on campus will be tabling. 

What piece of advice would you give to new students at Missouri State?  My biggest piece of advice that I would give to students is to go to professor’s office hours. Even if you are not struggling in the class just go into their office hours every so often to introduce yourself and get to know the professor. Your professors are here to help you learn and succeed, but it is a lot easier to ask for help from a professor when you are making an effort to get to know them, and they know you. 

What resource on campus was most useful to you your freshman year and why?  The resource that has been most useful to me here at Missouri State has been the writing center in the library. I would send any paper that I had to write for any class to the writing center to ensure that I had cited my sources correctly and that I didn’t have any grammatical errors in my paper. They were always super quick to get your papers back to you and their recommendations for my papers were always very helpful.