Project Renaissance, a new student organization at Valdosta State University, is on a mission to unite students and enhance their college experience by providing them with the resources and connections they need to succeed.
 
“Our purpose is to create positive influence in the campus and community through networking,” said Wynton Burnette, founder and president of Project Renaissance. He is a mass media major from Warner Robins, Georgia, who expects to graduate in December 2019.
 
“We connect our members with faculty, staff, student leaders, administrators, and people throughout the community based off of their majors, their interests and talents, and any skills they may want to learn,” he explained. “The campus is like a map, and our job is to be a compass for students and help them discover what’s available to them.”
 
Project Renaissance collaborates with fellow student organizations, campus offices and departments, and community organizations to offer master classes, workshops, lectures, forums, service opportunities, and other activities that directly relate to the wants, needs, and career goals of its members.
 
“There are more than 200 student organizations on campus, and Project Renaissance would like to unite everybody in a sense,” said Selenseia Holmes, staff advisor for Project Renaissance and coordinator of multicultural affairs for VSU’s Office of Social Equity. “So many of us do things in our own little circles, and Project Renaissance wants to let everybody know that we can do these things together and it doesn’t have to be so separate and compartmentalized.”
 
Holmes hopes that Project Renaissance will aid student retention by helping students to get involved on campus.
 
“Our job is to help them know that the university is invested in them and wants them to succeed,” she said. “We want to help members pursue their passions, and hopefully that will keep them here in Valdosta.”
 
Project Renaissance, which was recently recognized as an Organization of Merit by the Office of Student Life, is open to all undergraduate and graduate students at VSU.
 
“It’s for anybody who wants to better themselves, meet new people, and play a part in bringing together the campus and community,” Burnette said.