By Jasmine Driggs
One of Virginia Wesleyan’s own parted ways with the college after many years as a Marlin, from being a Wesleyan Ambassador, a member of Alpha Sigma Alpha, a 2007 graduate of VWC and an admissions counselor, Kelly King-Pack moved on to another chapter of her life.
Numerous people were affected by King-Pack’s departure. The Admissions Office and the Wesleyan Ambassador’s Program have lost a staff member. King-Pack’s last day at Virginia Wesleyan was Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015.
King-Pack said that it was extremely difficult to make the decision to leave Virginia Wesleyan College, and that Wesleyan has become her home over the years.
“I had to choose to leave because I have a great opportunity to move my career forward,” said King-Pack.
Chelsea Washington, a senior math major and member of Alpha Sigma Alpha at Wesleyan, said that she would miss working under King-Pack since this is Washington’s second year as a student coordinator for the Wesleyan Ambassador Program.
Washington said that she was able to get to know King-Pack on a personal level, which helped Washington to identify some of her weaknesses and help her to strengthen them. Washington said that this was what she valued most from King-Pack.
Carmen Dawkins, an admissions counselor at Wesleyan, said she was very shocked because King-Pack had been at Wesleyan for eight years. Dawkins said she is sad that King-Pack has to leave because of the close friendship that they have gained.
The big question that a lot of people have is who will take King-Pack’s spot in the Admissions Office. At this time, that information has not been released as the college continues to carefully interview candidates for the position.
Though no one is sure who will be chosen for the position, King-Pack did say that some former graduates are being interviewed for the position.
Dawkins said, “I would like to see the person who takes over Kelly’s position hold some of the same characteristics that Kelly has. Kelly is very organized, articulate and has very strong leadership. Her leadership helps the Ambassador program excel in so many ways.”
Washington said, “I hope to gain more flexibility from the person that will take Kelly’s position. The new person may want things done differently from what we are used to. I would like to learn from them and see how things will be done their way.”
Dawkins later said, “A positive attitude and someone who is a team player is very important, as well as being eager and ready to work with our students.”
“I have confidence that the program will still be successful. I have worked really hard to keep the program up, and I am positive that the Student Leads will help to ensure success,” said King-Pack.
King-Pack praised the students she had supervised.
“I think the ambassadors are the cream of the crop. The students are very flexible. In some ways it will be challenging for the students to transition to someone new and doing things differently. We have built a great relationship together as ambassadors. Hopefully, the new leader will care as much as I do,” said King-Pack.
King-Pack said, “Being involved in a student’s success is what I will miss the most. Seeing students grow over their time at Wesleyan and knowing that I had a role in their success is what I will miss the most.”
Dawkins said that King-Pack was always prepared for anything. Whether it is Tylenol or a pep talk, she always has everything.
Washington said, “One of my favorite memories is when I came to interview for the ambassador program, I apologized for bringing my book bag. She laughed and she told me that it was OK because I was a student first.”
Dawkins said she knows she will be able to spend time with King-Pack outside of work because they have become such strong friends.
“My best memory with Kelly is when we went to Homestead, Virginia, for a conference. We were able to bond and get to know each other. The entire experience was great. I got to know her on a personal level. She even convinced me to skip the last session of the conference, and instead, we took a tour of the homestead on our own,” said Dawkins.
After being at Wesleyan for eight years, King-Pack said she had plenty of memories at Virginia Wesleyan, both as a student and as a staff member.
Emotionally King-Pack said, “One of the biggest memories for me is walking across the stage at my graduation and receiving my degree, as I was the first in my family to go to college.”
“The biggest memory that I have as a staff member is being at the graduation of the first class of students that I recruited. I saw them graduate, and I knew that I was a part of their decision, and I was there to guide and be with them throughout their time at Wesleyan,” said King-Pack.
