Ariel (center) enjoying time with friends
While some people consider their college years to be a time of goofing off and enjoying being away from home for the first time, sophomore Ariel Bass, from Arkadelphia, took another route. Majoring in psychology, with a focus on the clinical branch, Bass is enthralled with the field. She said, “Psychology is really interesting to me. These are the only classes that, no matter how much information is given out, I never want to stop taking it in.” Coupled with her major is a double minor in biology and Spanish, and an extensive list of extracurricular activities and organizations that have kept her busy. She was recently inducted as a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), as well as becoming a member of the Black Alumni Society. Bass took the opportunity to attend their annual Shades of Ebony event, about which she said, “This was my favorite event that I’ve attended. This is where I met my absolute best friend, whom I could not do without.”
Bass is also keeps busy through her job with the Engineering Welcome Center, where she assists with the meeting and greeting of perspective engineering students, keeping the meeting areas ready for the guests, and other jobs deemed necessary to keep the Welcome Center running smoothly. Because she has been working there for more than a year, she was presented with the opportunity to participate in organizing the Engineering Career Awareness Program’s library, through which engineering students are encouraged to check out books necessary for classes they are taking that semester, as opposed to buying new ones.
Regarding her scholarship through the Alumni Association, Bass said, “The Black Alumni Society Endowed Scholarship means everything to me, for the simple fact that without it, I would not be in school working towards my career goals. Throughout the year, it has come to mean even more to me because it has provided me with the opportunity to network and to meet people that I pray are in my life for a very long time.”
