Senior Circuit: Joshua HarrisJoshua Harris is originally from Albany, Ga., a small city in the southwest corner of the state. Spartanburg, S.C., wasn’t on the radar of most of his classmates, but Wofford College managed to lure him in.
“I've come to call the upstate home more often than not,” says Harris. “I visited Wofford the fall of my senior year in high school and felt at once that this was what I wanted and where I needed to go for college. I'm not sure whether it was the rocking chairs at the baseball stadium or the Southern hospitality that the admissions staff showed me, but I was hooked. Furthermore, the Bonner Scholars program and the stellar Religion department solidified my choice.”
Being a Bonner scholar takes up most of Harris’ free time away from his studies. But he still tries to stay active in as many things as possible.
“I try to be involved in any group relating to the environment,” he says. “Outside of campus, my fiancé (Converse student Cassandra Morrow) and I try to participate in whatever outdoor activity we can. So far I have picked up kayaking, hiking, camping, climbing and I'm looking for the next thing to try. But basically I like to do anything outdoors because that's how I was raised and I see that not only is it fun but it is a healthy counterbalance to school work.”
Harris is a religion major with classes in government relating to social problems.
“Interestingly enough I came to Wofford thinking that I would have a double major in finance and religion, with the intent of working at a church as a pastor,” he says. “I am still pre-ministry, but I have since then dropped the finance component without having taken a class.
“Having just turned in my undergraduate thesis, I think it's safe to say that I'm a religion major through and through. I have really tried to focus my classes on religious movements, whether they be labeled cults, apocalyptic or extreme. I think that in looking at these social/religious instances we can look at not only how religion is used but how it is interpreted. It really is quite fascinating.”
Harris has an exciting gameplan for the immediate future.
“Just recently I received word of my acceptance into Duke's Divinity School,” he says. “So Cassandra and I will pack up and move to Durham for grad school, and then a wedding in October. In the meantime, though, I will be trying to take the GRE in preparation for admission to North Carolina's social work school. I intend to complete a dual grad degree: Master's of Divinity and a Master's of Social Work.
“It will take four years and then after that my desire is to work in the outdoor/wilderness education/therapy field. I would love to work as either a counselor or program manager directly out of grad school for a camp focusing on using wilderness elements to address social problems. And eventually I would like to be a camp director, perhaps for a camp focusing on deaf and hard-of-hearing students since this has been an element in my life.”
As his Wofford days near an end, Harris reflects on his favorite memories.
“My best memories at Wofford have involved the Interim program,” he says. “But my entire time at Wofford has been enjoyable. There are too many memories to share, but enough space to say that I found my future wife here, my future career here, and most importantly I found myself here. I encourage others out there to do the same.”