The Honor is Hers

Nathalie Moreno is just beginning to write the story of her life, and her next chapter will be etched into the very fabric of Florida Southern College’s history when she graduates on May 6 as the 137th Honor Walk Award recipient.

The Honor Walk, created in 1931 by then FSC president Ludd Spivey, honors Florida Southern students who have excelled in leadership, student involvement, and overall academics while attending the College. Though created in 1931, the Honor Walk honors graduates from every class, including the first graduates dating back to 1887 as Spivey wanted to honor past exceptional students as well.

Moreno’s name will be inscribed in a brick that will be placed alongside Mr. George’s Green, with the other Honor Walk recipients.

“It sets in more every day,” Moreno said. “I still text my mom every day and ask if she’s going to take a picture of me by my brick. Every day I’m more and more grateful that this opportunity has come to me … to be recognized as worthy. I think that this could have happened to anyone, but it has happened to me. In a pool of so many talented students, that have worked so hard to be where they are that I was given this honor. I am very grateful.”

The Beginning

Moreno’s story began in Hackensack, N.J.

As one of five daughters of Dominican Republic emigrants, Moreno grew up with hard-working parents who wanted their children to go to college. Moreno soon began to stand out academically and athletically at Union City High School as she ran for the cross country and track teams, but when she found out the school had its own newspaper, it set her off on a different course.

“I didn’t know we had a high school paper,” Moreno recalled. “My senior year I was involved in a lot of sports, but when I found out there was a paper I reached out to the advisor, and they offered me the sports editor/writer position. I knew I wanted to get involved in a college campus newspaper because I really enjoyed it. I recognized I liked talking to people and hearing their stories.”

Because of her academic standing, Moreno saw herself get accepted to many colleges and universities.

New York University, Rutgers, or Montclair State would keep her close to home, but Moreno had her eyes on an out of state destination.

Moreno had also been accepted to Florida State and the University of Tampa, but her sister told her to check out Florida Southern College before she made her decision. Moreno and her sister attended Scholar’s Weekend in 2019, and like so many before her, FSC worked its charm and Moreno’s heart was won.

“My sister was living around here and she had heard of FSC,” Moreno said. “She knew I was looking for a smaller campus where I could make connections with students and professors. As soon as I came here, I knew this was where I wanted to be. Everything about the campus … it was the perfect school and campus for me. I wouldn’t have thrived in a bigger school. I’m a people person, not a numbers person.”

The FSC Experience

With Moreno’s heart won, it was time to work on her mind.

From the first week Moreno was on campus, she knew she had to get involved with the campus newspaper, The Southern. From the outset, being a self-described people person, Moreno made an impact on Florida Southern’s campus.

It was not just with The Southern, for which she has been the editor-in-chief of during her senior year. Moreno got involved with many aspects of campus life during her four years at the College.

She is a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority, the Black Student Union, the Hispanic/Latinx Student Coalition, Cantilevers (a campus magazine), and has participated with CHAARG (Changing Health Attitudes and Actions to Recreate Girls), the Museum Ambassadors program, and Student Solutions.

Academically, Moreno has earned the President’s Scholar honor four times, has made the Dean’s List twice, and is a member of several honors programs including Sigma Tau Delta (English), Lambda Pi Eta (Communications), and Omicron Delta Kappa (Leadership).

Moreno is also a recipient of the Zeta Tau Alpha Foundation Scholarship and the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, which will provide her the opportunity after graduation to study Japanese culture from June 10-24 in Tokyo.

Because many of Florida Southern's majors require students to participate in an internship in their chosen field, Moreno also works at The Polk Museum of Art. Part of Moreno’s job is to record audio guides for exhibitions, with her goal of pulling the stories out of the artwork and artists to make the audience feel more invested in what they view.

The Next Chapter

Telling people’s stories is what Moreno wants to do once she graduates.

With hopes of becoming a multimedia journalist, Moreno wants to use her people skills to bring “honesty and lack of bias” back to journalism.

“It’s really a big part of why I want to pursue journalism, even in times like now,” she said. “It’s more important now to tell people’s stories. I want to find people that have been affected by the world today, where I can reach out and tell their stories and push them out to see how other people are affected.”

Associated Professor of Communications and advisor to The Southern, Mike Trice, has no doubt that Moreno will succeed.

“Nathalie brings both an attention to detail and an understanding of the bigger picture to her role with The Southern,” he said. “She understands not only what is happening on campus but also what is happening in the broader world around us. That broader perspective helps her make The Southern more relevant to our campus readership. In an era with so much distraction, it is so important to have students like Nathalie who can help bring awareness to, and make sense of, the news that students need to know about."

Of all the things Moreno said she has learned from her time at Florida Southern, she feels that going back to what made her come to the College in the first place is what helped her the most.

By getting to know Moreno’s fellow students and integrating herself into campus life, she feels she has grown the most.

“Just stepping out of my comfort zone (has helped me so much),” she said. “I grew up with the same people from grade school to high school graduation. Coming here, it was a lot different. Not only geographically, but the crowd was different. It took a little time for me to step out and talk to people, to introduce who I was. Once I did that, and it took a semester or two, I started reaping all the benefits. It showed me a lot of advantages to showing people who I am. By putting myself out there, it allowed me to achieve my goals.”