From rugged overnight backpacking trips to late-night showdowns under the intramural lights, the University of North Georgia has a way of turning ordinary moments into lifelong memories.  

Though UNG looks different than it did in the 1980s, students can still be united by the tight knit community that UNG has to offer. Teresa Walls Royall, a social work major who graduated in 1980, shares one of her favorite memories as a university student, “I was an INTRO leader, and the training I had to do was an overnight backpacking trip and this was one of the biggest accomplishments I have ever had and it was a great way to get close with the rest of our team.”  

The trip encouraged Royall to participate in more physical activity as a college student. She now encourages students to keep staying consistent with physical activity in college, “When I was a student, I started to run around the drill field, and this small habit set me up for lifelong regular exercise.”  

Lib Lane, a health information major who graduated in 1983, says, “My favorite things to do when I was a student was attending the BCM, hanging out with the friends I made, and watching the cadets march across the drill field during Gold Rush Days.”  

Eli Goolsby, a finance major who graduated in 2024, was also involved with the BCM and spent many late nights with friends. Goolsby says, “The most peak memory of my college experience was probably intramurals with some of my best friends in fall Dahlonega weather.”  

While seeing what alumni students took away from their college experience, Leah Kennedy, a sophomore business management major, focuses on what might be her favorite memory. Kennedy says, “My first weekend of college, I did a sunrise hike at preacher’s rock and this was the time I met my community here at UNG.”