Liz Hornick – Craven & Wannamaker

Hometown: Conover, NC

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Professional interests: College was a transformative experience for me. It is a unique time in a student’s life where they have access to an insurmountable amount of knowledge, resources, and connections at the heart of their community. My passion is to help students navigate this stage of life, support individual matriculation, and ensure that they each take advantage of the opportunities that wait for them just around the corner.

Summary of previous professional experience:  I completed my undergraduate degree at UNC-Chapel Hill where I majored in Media and Journalism. I aspired to work for an advertising agency honing my craft in creative work, but graduating during a pandemic (and my affinity for smaller towns with close-knit communities) led me otherwise. I decided to pivot and completed a stint of seasonal employment working at various summer camps across the country. Through these experiences I discovered my passion for working with college students. It was then that I decided to earn my graduate degree in Student Affairs. During my time in my master’s program, I gained hands-on experience working across various functional areas such as Student Government, Upward Bound, and Outdoor Programs. I am eager to step into my first full-time position at Duke University and grow right alongside the students I’ll be serving.

Education

• M.A. in Student Affairs Administration, Appalachian State University
• B.A. in Media and Journalism (focus in Advertising/Public Relations), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Intellectual interests:  College Student Development; Feminism; Gender and Sexuality; Branding and Identity Development; Effect of Green Spaces on Wellbeing; Sociocultural Impact of Fast Fashion

Fun fact:  I am a trumpet player and have been playing since I was 12 years old. During undergrad I played in UNC’s symphonic band and in graduate school I was a member of the Watauga Community Band. Now I play with the Durham Community Band!

What was the most challenging part of college for you? What did you learn from that experience?  Going to college was my first time navigating life outside of my small hometown. I was introduced to so many new ideas, cultures, experiences, and schools of thought. Everything that I knew to be true up until that point came into question and I began to form an entirely new belief system; one that reflected my own values instead of those of my parents. This was challenging for me because I began to feel a sense of betrayal coupled with resentment, regret, and self-doubt. But it is because of this that I am a more critical thinker and feel firm in the belief system that I uphold today. I now know what I believe in and why I choose to do so. I am able to reconcile my current views with the ones I was brought up with while becoming more comfortable navigating difficult conversations and widening my perspective by listening to others.

What did you learn or gain in college that you have carried with you?  An education is never wasted. I initially began my academic career as a Pre-Dental major. There was a lot of societal pressure to pursue a STEM degree because “those degrees are the ones that get jobs.” However, as someone who has always gravitated towards the arts and humanities, I stayed true to myself and switched my major to interpersonal communication. Through that switch I found multiple opportunities and potential career paths that I would not have known otherwise. I fell back in love with school and genuinely looked forward to going to class each day. Through this experience I learned the importance of staying true to myself, the value of transferable skills, and that an education is truly never wasted. 

What do you know now that you wish you had known in college?  In college I wanted to try everything. I said “yes” to many different people and although that did allow me to get more involved on campus and build my community, my extra-curricular activities became overwhelming, and I was burning out quickly. It was easy to overextend myself in a place that always had something to do. In 2020 I was in my junior year, and it wasn’t until the world went on pause that I realized how badly I needed a break. In hindsight, I wish I would have prioritized my wellbeing over my severe case of FOMO. Setting boundaries and saying no does not make me a bad person.