Alumna mentor guides students to shared success
Rachel Perry (BBA ’93) has spent the decades since her graduation carving out a place for not only herself, but the Bulldogs who come after her.
There are student experiences at the University of Georgia that many are familiar with. There are the late-night dinners at Snelling Dining Commons or figuring out how best to make it across campus in 15 minutes during class change, and yes, of course, the football games in the student section. But there is also the fear about choosing the right major and confusion about what internships to look for. For many students, the opportunities that college presents for the future can be overwhelming, and finding support to help tackle those uncertainties can seem daunting.
“I remember feeling lost when I first got to campus,” says Stevonna Wheeler ’25. “I needed a sense of direction from someone who was not only familiar with UGA but also with my planned major and eventual career.” Luckily for UGA students, the university has a vast and diverse alumni network that is heavily involved in many facets of the student experience.
That’s why Tia Smith (BBA ’18, MBA ’25) returned to Athens as a graduate student. “I knew that UGA has the best alumni network from my time here as an undergraduate student,” says Tia, now pursuing her Master of Business Administration at UGA. “I was going into a new phase of my life and wanted to have that support as I navigated it.”
(Left to right) Tia, Rachel and Stevonna walk down a sunlit hallway in UGA’s Terry College of Business.
Through the UGA Mentor Program, Tia and Stevonna were paired with Rachel Perry (BBA ’93), chief innovation officer at Aon and UGA Alumni Board affinity committee chair. Anyone who meets Rachel can agree that she is a force to be reckoned with. From offering guidance and wisdom to students like Tia and Stevonna to creating the Rachel Cornelius Perry Scholarship for students in Terry’s Risk Management and Insurance program, the Terry College of Business alumna has continuously used her success to empower UGA students.
“For me, it’s an opportunity to pay forward all the support I received throughout my career from really great mentors,” she says. “As a first-generation college student who went straight into corporate America after school, there was so much I didn’t know, especially as a woman of color in that space.”
As a first-generation college student, Rachel was steadfast and driven, sometimes forgoing certain experiences so that she could stay on top of her studies and further her career. By the time she was settled in her career, Rachel had a very clear conviction on what she should do with her success: pay it forward to the next generation.
“Rachel was the perfect fit to be my mentor — learning from her has had the greatest impact on me so that I can see all the possibilities for myself in five or 10 years,” Tia says.
Rachel’s post-graduate involvement with the university through the Mentor Program and her own scholarship program exemplifies just how meaningful her time at UGA was to her — and how she hopes current and future students are able to experience that same fulfillment.
(From left to right) Tia, Rachel and Stevonna pose at UGA’s Terry College of Business.
“Education is the thing that made the most difference for me in my career,” she says. “Because of that, I have been so blessed to have an incredible career and to be in a position where I can take some of the fruits of my labor and pour it back into the place that made such a huge impact on me.”
Rachel’s legacy is already shaping up to be something special. The Rachel Cornelius Perry Scholarship can make its first award soon, and Tia and Stevonna are just two of the many mentees that Rachel has left a lasting impression on thus far.
“I think as students and as young people, we feel like we have to have it all figured out,” says Stevonna. “One thing I’ve learned from this experience with Rachel is that there are so many people in UGA’s network that have paved the way for you and they want to help in whatever way they can.”
“That sense of community and collective drive is something that is unique to UGA,” says Tia. “There’s a saying that Bulldogs ‘attack the day,’ and every time I see a fellow UGA alum, I know that we both got to where we are because we attacked the day and took initiative with the support of UGA’s network.”
For Rachel, seeing students succeed is the most rewarding part of staying connected with UGA post-graduation. “It makes me so happy and proud to see Stevonna take on leadership roles on campus and Tia make a fruitful transition in her career,” she says. “It’s exciting to know that when I retire, there will be so many young women knocking it out of the park in corporate America, and if I can play even a small role in that, I will feel so fulfilled from the experience.”
Leave your own legacy at UGA by growing your connection through your local alumni chapter, giving to the areas on campus you’re most passionate about or guiding students to their future career paths.
