Maybe this is nerdy to admit, but I love the Ole Miss Creed. When I read or hear it, I am proud to be a part of our University. Here at Ole Miss, we have just wrapped up Creed Week, so maybe you all are sick and tired of hearing about it; however, this is supposed to be our guideline. This should be the bar we strive to live up to every day. My freshmen year, I walked past the Union and I signed my name on the Creed book, but I had no idea what that meant, or what I promised when I wrote down my name. This summer, as a MPower leader, my perspective broadened, and I really learned about our Creed and what exactly it means. Now I genuinely understand what I promised to this University when I agreed to be a student here. You can think that is it silly, but as voluntary members of the University of Mississippi, it is our responsibility to have a respect for our Creed:

The University of Mississippi is a community of learning dedicated to nurturing excellence in intellectual inquiry and personal character in an open and diverse environment. As a voluntary member of this community:

I believe in respect for the dignity of each person

I believe in fairness and civility

I believe in personal and professional integrity

I believe in academic honesty

I believe in academic freedom

I believe in good stewardship of our resources

I pledge to uphold these values and encourage others to follow my example.

What if we actually took the Creed seriously? What if each of us strived to live by these statements? What would Ole Miss look like? Just let that sink in, because it actually #gets #me #hype to imagine.

What the Creed means to me, isn't what it will mean to you because the Creed means something different to each of us. It speaks to us all in different ways, but here is my perspective on my three very favorite lines:

"Academic Freedom" means that we are all welcome here, and we have the ability to thrive on campus. The Creed enables me, as a Hispanic female, to have the same opportunities to learn and gain an education as a white male, an African-American female, a transgender student, an atheist, a Muslim, the list goes on and on and on. Our administration enforces and ensures that we have equal opportunities. No one belongs at the University of Mississippi more than another.

"Personal and professional integrity" means that I hold myself to a higher standard. It isn't about who is watching us, it's about doing what is right on and off campus, in the classroom, and in the workplace. It means holding each other, and ourselves, accountable. It is having the best interest of those around you, and pursuing our best selves.

"Having the respect for the dignity of each person" is hands down my favorite line. We don't have to love every student on campus, but each of us deserves to be respected.

We come from all walks of life, here at Ole Miss, and it can be easy to judge, exclude, or hold biases against one another; however, the Creed encourages us to break down those barriers. If I had not been exposed to all the amazing people I have met here at Ole Miss, my perspective and mindset would not have been broadened.

I would not have grown.

It is having a respect for the people around us that will make us great. It is the big things, yes, but it is also the little things. Smile when you pass someone, hold open the door for those behind you, help someone who is lost on campus. It's so so so simple: just be respectful of each other.

The Creed is a powerful thing. It is greater than you and I, but it is the difference in a campus and a home. As voluntary citizens of this community, let us not just learn the Creed, but live by it.