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Brianna Ridennour

2016 Builder Alumnus

A large part of Brianna Ridenour’s journey to where she is now really lives within that team and community builder mindset; she is a builder of community and advocacy thru and thru. She “starts something” when most people would be daunted by the task: like organizing a Black Lives Matter rally, pushing forward social change through education of herself and others, and continuing to advocate for minoritized groups. After her time at UNL, Brianna went to Colorado State University to pursue a masters in Student Affairs and Higher Education so she could continue creating space for people to feel a sense of belonging. During her time as a Builder, Brianna was also an active Student Strengths Coach and even helped mentor, teach, and manage younger Student Strengths Coaches. Her ability to see innate talents in others and help them navigate the world with the talents they possess has helped her continue to show the world how unique talents and abilities should be celebrated instead of compared to the “traditional” way of thinking or doing. Because of this mindset – celebrating and advocating for the unique talents of others – she has found her passion. During her time at CSU, that passion, mixed with her Builder Mindset to create something where nothing existed before, has led to the creation of a brand-new job created specifically for her. Knowing herself so well, and proving herself an asset to any team, she put herself in the position to create her own job description: one that she would thrive in as she advocated for those around her. This new position will help non-traditional learners at CSU (i.e., student veterans, adult learners, parent learners, etc.) She will be supporting them by sharing resources, creating events to build community, and disrupting the traditional patterns of higher education. One example of this disruption is the onboarding process to college. For most traditional learners entering college, they are likely 18/19-year-old students who are leaving home for the first time, searching for community and direction. Brianna noticed that even the non-traditional students were receiving the same onboarding which did not provide the right onboarding experience to set these students up for success. So, Brianna’s builder mindset was inspired by the initiatives on campus to create new, more applicable, resources for these students. That led to the creation of the Transfer Student Union, having more support resources for student veterans, parent learners, and adult learners. It has been known to many that Brianna’s passion is unmatched, so her passion paired with the builder mentality to create something and disrupt the status quo have continued to have outcomes that create and hold space for others that would not have been there without her.

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