Project Connect Celebrates Three Years of Enhancing Student Life

Project Connect, a program that helps Harvey Mudd College students build new friendships across campus, celebrated three years of strengthening community at a recent picnic with the fall 2023 program cohort. 

Offered by The Office of Health and Wellness (OHW), Project Connect provides students a space to deepen their connections with one another by working on a five-week project of their choosing that culminates in a group celebration.

Groups of three to five students meet once a week for a student facilitator-led meal where they share with each other through broad icebreaker questions and work on their group project. Previous projects have included organizing a kite-making workshop, hosting a mid-day slumber party and a gardening workshop.

Student leaders and facilitators Nilay Pangrekar ’24 and Kayleah Tsai ’24 have been a part of the program since fall 2021, when students returned to campus following pandemic-necessitated remote study.

“Being a first year online and not really knowing anyone, this new form of interaction really excited me,” Tsai said. “It seemed pretty simple; we meet for one hour a week, and I made new friends out of it. Covid definitely made me feel a little isolated, so I was looking for any form to connect with other Mudders.”

Pangrekar said he was inspired to become more involved and moved into a leadership role in Project Connect because of the challenges he experienced when trying to build new relationships across campus after remote study.

“I think because of COVID, the class of 2024 felt cliquey,” Pangrekar said. “I wanted to stay involved and create a welcoming environment, so I moved from being a student participant to a student facilitator.”

Pangrekar and Tsai said they are appreciative that Harvey Mudd recognized that the school needed a program like this.

“It is really reassuring to know that this program has backing from the school,” Tsai said. “They think it’s useful, they’re willing to fund it and I think this program is pretty useful to all of us.”

Project Connect culminated its fall 2023 programming with a picnic on the lawn in front of the R. Michael Shanahan Center for Teaching and Learning.

Project Connect has helped over 130 students connect over the three-year span of the program at Harvey Mudd and continues to grow each semester. Students can sign up by emailing facilitators or OHW directly.