Nape kampe ak Ayiti

Nape kampe ak Ayiti.

It means “We stand with Haiti” in Haitian Creole, and it’s the slogan for the “William & Mary Supports Haiti” student organization on campus. We had our first meeting a couple days ago, and the slogan rang more true than ever. By 5 o’clock, we were looking at over 200 students who had come to the interest meeting to see how they could help. It was a great meeting—but what I remember the best was the sheer energy in the room. There was this incredible, unifying, almost electric spirit that was this potent combination of everyone’s collective social responsibility, motivation, and empathy. And it buzzed between everyone in that room, regardless of what background they came from on campus. After going through all the information cards we received from all the students present, the multitude of campus groups and individuals present was staggering.

It really was an awesome sight, but frankly, I don’t know if I would have expected any less from this campus. We always say how much of a socially conscious campus we are, how the students here relish in being proactive, how any of us can spout out definitions of civic engagement on cue. We all (and fellow tour guides can attest to this) love to blurt out our favorite statistics about how W&M has the largest number of students who go into the Peace Corps and Teach for America per capita of any institution in the United States (and trust me, I do. That’s one of my favorite W&M fun facts). I always thought that there was this civically charged undercurrent in our community, silently steering students and faculty alike — and sure enough, it showed up that night, more than 200 times over again. Those statistics, which I would eagerly spit out during tours to the extent that they’d merely become eulogizing words, came back to life. Seeing these 200+ students under the same roof, for the same cause, revealed the depth and the frank honesty behind the statistics and claims we all hear about this campus all the time.

I could keep going on and on, but I should start summing this up before I lose you. In the end, I want to thank the community, students and faculty alike, for proving to me, once again, that this school really is everything it claims to be. The WMSH slogan is “Nape kampe ak Ayiti”, and that day I saw more than 200 undergraduates, graduates, college administrators, and faculty stand with Haiti. I am nothing short of excited to see what else this campus can and will do in the weeks, months, and years to come; the mere thought of it is intoxicating. Thank you, William & Mary.