The Katherine Reese Pamplin College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
It felt like destiny for political science major David Peltier to attend Augusta University. It’s almost the family business. “My mom and my aunt, they’re both alumni of the university, and my aunt was actually here for a while as Vice President,” David says. It’s hard for him to go anywhere on campus without someone recognizing him. However, David’s recognition is not all due to his relatives, not by a long shot.
Even though he’s a legacy student, David chose to forge his own path and make his mark on the University. Having been a part of everything from the Student Government Association, to the JSAC Advisory Board, to a founding father for AU’s Pi Kappa Phi fraternity chapter and several more student organizations, it’s almost harder to find someone who hasn’t worked with David than someone who has.
David has also taken his initiative outside of campus, all the way to local government. Recently, he became a part of the Young Professionals of Augusta, an organization that helps twenty-one to forty-five-year-olds build business skills like networking and professionalism. Bridging the Gap, a group project for a class that eventually became a reality for the Augusta community is one of David’s greatest accomplishments in college.
Within this fiscal year, the Parks Department of Augusta will use the $37,000 granted to them for Bridging the Gap to sponsor a bridge dinner in order to both attract college students to Augusta’s many downtown businesses and to raise funds for homelessness in the Augusta area.
David hasn’t just worked with local government, either. Since 2014, David has been involved with multiple congressional campaigns. “I’ve being doing it all through college, so poli-sci was right up my alley. It is really exciting to be on the campaign trail…and so the education that we get here at AU really furthers that, and helps us understand how we can get more involved in the process, on the campaign trail and in the legislative process.” Learning more about the processes involved in political campaigns and getting to apply them in practice has only strengthened his passion for political science.
If there was one person he wishes he could have met, it’s Ronald Reagan. “Me being a big poli-sci person, I’ve always heard, you know, ‘He was one of the greatest presidents!’ and everything like that. I wasn’t really around in his presidency, and so I never really got the chance…To sort of see what he was like in person.”
David’s biggest goal right now, though, is to graduate to honor his grandfather. “I recently lost my grandfather back in September. He was probably one of my best role models I had. He always wanted to see me graduate, and so I’m carrying on the legacy into this May, to carry on that fulfillment of getting a college degree.”
Even though graduation is very close, David will miss the school that has been such a big part of his life since childhood. “When you leave, you’re going to miss all these professors, your friends, all the stuff you did on campus. It’s kind of funny to look back, reflect, especially in your senior year, and [realize] how much you’ve done on campus to benefit the students, benefit just the community itself. So, it’ll be sad to go in May, but it’s good memories to reflect on.”
