Nyla Conaway ’23
Now located: New Haven, Connecticut
Me, in three words: Talkative, Thoughtful, Kind
What other clubs, sports, other activities are you normally involved in?
Track and Field, Black Student’s Alliance, AEMES, Gold Key
If you had to write a dictionary entry for the word “Smithie,” what would it be?
A Smithie is a person that considers how the feelings, opinions and perspectives of others will be affected when they are making decisions about how they function in the world.
What’s one piece of advice you’d like to share?
College will transform you as a person, especially Smith College. You will learn so much about the world and about yourself. Forget the biases that you may have had and come in with a mind and body that are ready to be flexible. Prepare yourself for changes. They will happen in many different parts of your life, they may not all be perfect, but they are all a part of your journey to truly learning about who you are.
“A Smithie is a person that considers how the feelings, opinions and perspectives of others will be affected when they are making decisions about how they function in the world.”
What has been the biggest insight you’ve gained from the COVID-19 experience?
The biggest insight I have gained from the COVID-19 experience is to be grateful and appreciative of what you currently have, because the instant that it is taken away you will feel an emptiness in the spot it existed.
What’s one place on campus you particularly miss?
One place that I particularly miss on campus is Tyler Dining Hall. Tyler is the closest dining hall to the athletic facilities and it is open the latest, so I dined there frequently. After morning lifts and after late practices the team would walk over to Tyler together for breakfast or dinner—the food was delicious. We would have passionate discussions about our track goals, analyze each other’s eclectic eating patterns, and create dining hall cuisine from butter and jelly sandwiches, microwaved ice cream AKA a milkshake, and a juice cocktail of every flavor from the machine. Tyler makes me smile, I miss the time spent there and hope to spend much more time there.
What’s one message you’d say to incoming students or one thing you’d tell them about being at Smith?
Smith can seem very intimidating before you get here in all aspects (academics, social, life), but don’t worry, you belong here and we will accept you with love and open arms.
Smithie Snapshots is a new profile series highlighting members of the Smith community, located all over the world.