PROFILE:
Joshua Weaver

Houston-born and bred, Joshua Weaver '10 knew little about Lehigh until his mom happened upon the university website and urged her son to take a closer look. The aspiring journalism major did just that, coming to Lehigh for Diversity Day in 2006.

"When I saw the university for the first time, I was astounded," says Weaver. "The picturesque landscape and the collegiate atmosphere completely sealed Lehigh as my number one pick for college."

Once he arrived in Bethlehem and became acclimated to his new campus community, the journalism and political science double major found even more to be impressed by. An array of nearly 150 student clubs and organizations, opportunities for leadership development and a chance to contribute to the student newspaper quickly engaged him and solidified his sense that he made a wise choice in selecting Lehigh.

"I was always the type of person who liked to be involved, but Lehigh definitely opened my eyes to the importance and excitement of getting involved on campus," Weaver says.

In addition to writing for the Brown & White, Weaver is also a member of the National Society of Black Engineers, the Black Student Union, serves as a Diversity Delegate and was selected to participate in Leadership Lehigh—a four year comprehensive program that helps develop leaders of the future.

The program consists of four phases of intensive leadership development that focus on skill development, practical application, experiential learning and self-reflection.

Weaver also serves as an orientation leader for incoming students, and as a peer counselor through Kaleidescope, a program that facilitates social justice programs in residence halls, Greek houses and across campus.

Throughout his Lehigh journey, Weaver says he can rely on the guidance and strong mentoring relationships he's developed through the Dean of Students office.

"The people there are very knowledgeable about the ins and outs of student life at Lehigh," he says. "I feel that I can go to any one of them for academic or personal advice."

His positive experience, he says, is not exclusive to him.

"Anyone can truly find a niche through the student activities on campus. To me, the only way to stay sane between the projects and pressures of academics here is to broaden my life to encompass the extracurricular projects I'm involved in."