With inflection and attitude in her voice, the vivacious side of a 21-year-old senior emerges as she talks about a more serious side: her studies. Senior Angela Campbell is the first anthropology major to graduate with departmental honors. Campbell, who is also double-majoring in religion, said she feels like she is ready to graduate, but the more she reflects on what she learned at TCU, the more she realizes what is out there to learn.
Campbell applied to many schools and narrowed it down to TCU and New York University. The decision came after visiting both schools and talking to professors and student foundation members during a visit to campus while she was still in high school, she said.
“There were so many people here that wanted to talk to me about my interests, where I was going and classes that I should take,” Campbell said. “The faculty and staff seemed to care a lot, so that was the deciding factor for me.”
Campbell began her freshman year as a premajor and began taking honors religion classes and an anthropology class to fulfill her University Curriculum Requirements. She said she enjoyed those classes and decided to continue her education by majoring in both subjects.
Miguel Leatham, an anthropology lecturer and Campbell’s adviser, said Campbell has a high level of intellectual engagement and is committed to international and social relations.
Leatham nominated Campbell for the Departmental Scholar Award from the Anthropology, Sociology and Criminal Justice Department, and the department unanimously approved her for the award, he said.
Balancing work and school has been hard for her because employers are not always sensitive to college students because of their hectic lifestyles, Campbell said. She works at Beauty Brands and is a double major with a minor in Spanish. Campbell credits her adviser for telling her what classes she needed to take in order to graduate in four years.
Campbell said she decided to join Alpha Chi Omega because she wanted to get involved on campus and not rely on what she already knew about Fort Worth. She said the women in the sorority understand that she is academically focused and has a job and that she is proud to be a part of that organization.
Josh Cauthen, a senior political science major and friend of Campbell’s, said Campbell is very committed and passionate about her work. She makes a point to do her best because she loves what she studies, Cauthen said.
Cauthen said he first met Campbell during their freshman year at a mandatory common reading. He said he was interested in what she had to say during the discussion and they got to know each other on the walk over to Daniel-Meyer Coliseum for the Chancellor’s Assembly.
Work and school make it difficult to find time to spend together, Cauthen said.
“We find time whether we are just studying together or having lunch or dinner together,” Cauthen said. “We are involved in a lot of the same organizations, so we get to see a lot of each other when we are working on projects and things like that.”
In addition to her membership in Alpha Chi Omega, Campbell is also a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, a leadership honor society, and Phi Beta Kappa, an undergraduate honors organization. Campbell is also on the dean’s list and has won the Departmental Scholar Award from the Anthropology, Sociology and Criminal Justice Department.
After graduation, Campbell eventually wants to be a professor in graduate studies and focus on gender studies research. She said she plans to take a year off from school to research different universities so she can decide where she wants to attend graduate school.
“I am going to get a job and move in with some friends,” Campbell said, “It will be nice since I have been studying so hard. I haven’t really gone out much, so it will kind of be my college experience.
