Class of 2026: Quira Bolling

Nervous because I did not know what to expect, but excited.

The little girl who decided she wanted to be a lawyer — and is still on track to do that — but also has found her purpose in advocating for people in need and ready to see what’s next in her journey.

I am currently the student fellow for the Associate Vice President for Institutional Mission and Belonging and have been placed on committees where I have helped create events and programs, and interviewed potential hires. I have been introduced to people who come back to the college to visit, and I am forever thankful to have been introduced to the alumni on campus. I also have had opportunities to sit in luncheons where I have met wonderful alumni who want to speak to students.

Stepping into the peer mentor position in my sophomore year of college showed me that I don’t have to be perfect to succeed. It showed me that I could lead if I held my head up high and did not focus on what happened around me. I’ve always known I had the potential; I just needed the push from a support system that I created over time.

I want to be remembered as someone who not only gave it their all to make the most of my time here on the Hill, but also someone who encouraged others to be themselves without worrying about who’s watching. I want to be remembered as someone who always spoke up about what was right and tried to make sure that those around me felt like their voices were heard.

Dr. Richard Smith ’00 influenced me to become who I am today. He gave me grace and provided opportunities for me to grow. He showed me that sometimes you will be the only one in a group to speak up for others, while creating safe spaces when things get too loud. Through his support, I was able to grow into the best version of myself here on the Hill while shining in my own way without the pressure of others’ expectations.

My favorite class ever was Principles of Management with Christopher “Doc” Esgar. It truly did not feel like a class but more like a conversation every day. He not only taught us but gave us insight on what happens in the business world. He made sure not to talk at us but talk with us. He paid attention to every student and made a point to check in with us, reminding us that while we are students, we are also humans that need rest to be able to make a change in the world. Doc took the time to speak life into every single student in the class and ensure that we could understand the material that was being taught.

When I first started at McDaniel, I joined the EDGE program, which made me feel at home. It gave me a space where I could connect with people from my hometown of Baltimore. I loved the feeling of belonging that it gave me, so I decided that I wanted to be a mentor for the rest of my years at McDaniel because it is so important to be able to have a space where you can connect with people that understand how hard it might be to adjust to a different environment. I joined the Black Student Union when my peer mentor encouraged her mentees to stop by because she was on the executive board. I went and enjoyed the sense of community that it gave me and how it allowed me to connect with students on campus that I did not cross paths with because they were either older than me or had classes in different buildings. I became a peer mentor in my sophomore year, but not in the conventional way. At first it was difficult, but then after time, I got to know my first group of mentees and never looked back. All the mentees that I have had will forever have a special space in my heart, and I will always be grateful for them. I wish nothing but the best on their college journey, because with each group I learned something new not only about my peers but also about myself. I joined the Student Government Association (SGA) Executive Board in my junior year as projects chair because I wanted to help the student body. Now, I am the vice president of SGA, and I love what I do with the students that have shared some of their concerns with me. I would have loved if more students came to SGA and talked about the changes that they wanted to see so that we could work with them to ensure that it happened. I am also a student worker, so I helped plan events and loved seeing them come to life. It felt so rewarding, and I loved the joy that students attending the events had.

How serious the school takes tailgating. I was shocked by the number of people that come back to the tailgates for the football season. I was also confused about how some of the fraternities had couches on the hill for the tailgate until one time I saw them carrying the couches back to the residence halls!

How welcoming the Westminster community is to McDaniel students. I have done the Westminster Welcome walk all four years here at McDaniel, and it seems like the community comes out with something bigger each year. The Westminster community is very involved with the college; we have big events, and the community will come to support the student organizations as well as the college during those times.

“How American Institutions Have Shaped the Lives of Black Women: An Intersectional Philosophical Analysis”

My capstone studies how American institutions like education, work, healthcare, and politics shape the lives of Black women. It touches on both history and the present to highlight how sexism and racism have worked hand in hand to limit opportunities. While using the idea of intersectionality, I argue that the experiences of Black women reveal deeper problems in how equality and justice have been practiced in the American democracy.

After graduation, I plan on taking a gap year to study for the LSAT and then applying to law school. But I also want to try and make a difference in my community, so if I can find a nonprofit that allows me to pour into the younger generation while also being able to create programs to help people who are in need, that would be amazing. I want to be able to advocate for people while also teaching them ways to advocate for themselves without being labeled as combative.

I plan on staying connected to McDaniel through the connections that I made along the way, not just through faculty and staff, but also the students that I mentored and befriended along my journey. I tell them that I am always a call away, and I truly mean it. Even though I am leaving McDaniel, they have become a part of the family that I created here on the Hill.

It meant everything. I chose McDaniel because while researching colleges, I noticed that they cared for the students they reached out to. They worked with me, and when certain funding changed throughout my years on the Hill, McDaniel chose to support me and match what was taken away so that I did not have to worry about whether I could come back.

I am technically a first-generation student, but I have mentors and so many more people that are a part of my support system who are college-educated. Being a first-gen student means that I am just paving the way for the younger generations that come after me in my family. I am showing my family that everyone must start somewhere when trying to make a change. I always knew that I wanted to go to college. Being a first-generation student never made me feel like I was limited, but more so made me want to make the most out of my experience to ensure that I had no regrets.