Sam Mitchell
Jan. 21, 2026
Dec. 13, 2025, marked the first day of winter break for students at Thiel College. On Jan. 13, 2026, the students who traveled home for the break returned to campus. Wednesday, Jan. 14, was the first day of the spring semester. Mixed reactions to coming back to school surface such as excitement, anxiety, homesickness, relief, along with many others. All good things must come to an end, which begs the question: what did the students of Thiel College do over their month-long winter break?
Many students over the winter break felt the need to relax so they could be recharged for the spring semester. First year student Pereston Peterson stated that his favorite activity he did on winter break was sleep. Much like Peterson, student Blessing Tete stated that over her winter break she attended church and slept in. Political Science major and senior Lexi Brown revealed she spent time with her family as well as resting. Hopefully students were able to rest a lot and recharge for this semester!
Other students such as Abreanna Thompson had a busier schedule during the winter break. Thompson states, “I mostly hung out with my friends online, napped, learned a little bit of technology, and overall, just had a good time.” This student declares that her favorite winter break activity was spending time with her friends. Like Thompson, student Keller Herzberger stated, “I spent time with my beautiful, loving girlfriend and my loving family. We had a great time.” The breaks are a wonderful time of the year to spend time with those who we hold dear to us.
Students who must travel further away in order to see their families also appreciated the break. Sophomore student Madison Rogers traveled to New York City as well as North Carolina to spend precious time with her family. Gigi Castro also traveled a long way home to spend time with her family. “My favorite part of break was spending time with my family,” Castro says, “I don’t get to see them so much since I live so far.” Student Spencer Cleary from Australia went home to Sydney and spent as much time on the beach as he could.
I believe it is safe to say that a majority of the students at Thiel College enjoyed their month-long winter breaks in their own, unique ways. From those who had a relaxing and restful break to those who traveled to other countries, each student had the opportunity to savor the break and make the most of it, however that looks like to them.
Photo by Giovanna Castro. Depicted in back row left to right: Taliah O’dneal and Kenya Swindall. Front row left to right: Giovanni Castro and Elyse Mercado.
