Soon-to-be Double Eagle Ashley Claas says she has always had an A-type personality, both academically and athletically. 

“I’m a planner,” she said. “Everyone in my family had attended the University of Georgia, so, naturally, I also planned to go to UGA.”

Claas grew up in the small town of Watkinsville, Georgia, just south of Athens. 

However, she discovered that finding success and joy might mean deviating from plan A. 

“That year, there were double the applicants because of a flood of applications following the COVID-19 pandemic. So, I thought…what do I do now? Georgia Southern was one of the schools that welcomed me in, and my mom had suggested that I give it a shot even though I had never really been away from home,” Claas recounted. 

While completing her bachelor’s in secondary education with a focus in history, she began searching for ways to get involved with student teaching on campus. 

When she saw a listing for a group fitness instructor position in fall 2023, Claas decided to take another chance on herself and go for it. 

“I was a competitive dancer growing up, and I didn’t have the most healthy relationship with exercise or my body. And I think social media nowadays can be really discouraging when everyone looks picture-perfect all the time. Doing these classes helped heal something in me,” Claas said. 

Alongside growing her passion for group fitness, Claas chose to get involved in Greek Life on campus, joining Chi Omega during her time as an undergraduate student – another unexpected, but life-changing milestone for the education major. 

“I hadn’t originally thought that I would want to be involved in Greek life,” she said. “However, it opened up a lot of opportunities, and really helped me get to know people on campus, including my roommate of three years!”

After completing her undergraduate degree in 2024, she set her sights on her next challenge: a master’s program. Because of her previous work at the Recreation Activity Center (RAC), she was offered a position as a graduate assistant in the Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, teaching group spin classes, aerobics and small-group fitness, as well as mentoring the RAC’s newest instructors. 

“I told my mom I have this opportunity where I can get my master’s and have the tuition waived, while doing what I love,” Claas said. 

Her continued dedication to campus recreation has earned her some of the Campus Recreation & Intramurals’s highest awards: Leader of the Pack and Instructor of the Year, thanks to the support of staff members like Trish Evans, Georgia Southern’s group fitness program director. 

“Staff like Trish have, of course, been very encouraging and supportive during my time here. She made me feel confident in leading group fitness and sharing my love of inclusive, joyful classes with other students seeking that same environment,” Claas noted. 

Claas’s passion for fitness has extended beyond campus. In February 2026, Claas was a presenter at the Southeast Collegiate Fitness Expo, and had the opportunity to speak to more than 600 fellow students, showcasing her leadership skills and passion for fitness while representing Eagle Nation. 

With Georgia Southern’s flexible master’s in secondary education program, Claas says that balancing her passion for wellness and teaching, was surprisingly manageable despite her active lifestyle. 

“The secondary education master’s program has a smaller pool than other education programs, so I got to know a lot of my professors and instructors very well, and vice versa. My professors allowed me to tweak assignments to best fit my situation while still getting the same quality education.”

Although Claas affirmed that she enjoyed working with the faculty in her program, one professor’s kind words from the College of Education particularly stood out when discussing career plans after graduation.

“I went to speak with Dr. Barrow one day to just talk to her about my goals and dreams for the future. When I admitted that my time at the RAC had made me consider pursuing a career in professional group fitness instruction, she told me it was okay to try something different for a little while. There was nothing wrong with changing your plans, and changing them again,” Claas said.

For Claas, receiving validation that embracing change is a natural part of self-discovery was truly a meaningful moment. 

“It was validating to have someone who was a mentor and a teacher for me throughout my program to be so supportive,” she said. “She affirmed that there’s nothing wrong with me for wanting to try something different, and I feel that my time as a Double Eagle in Georgia Southern’s College of Education prepared me for teaching both in and out of the classroom.”

As for what comes next, Claas says she will certainly miss the little south Georgia city that became her home for five years. However, as she enters her next chapter as an alumna of Eagle Nation, Claas hopes to continue to inspire others to soar with Southern. 

She said, “I feel like I am the spokesperson for Georgia Southern now! If I were to give any prospective students advice, I’d say don’t be afraid to try new things! Get involved. You’ll fall in love with the community.” 

Madison Buford was born and raised just a stone’s throw away from ������Ƶ’s Statesboro campus. As she watched the University and the city grow, she knew exactly where she wanted to go to college.

“You can feel Georgia Southern wherever you go in Statesboro,” Buford said. “It’s a huge part of the community, and the community loves and appreciates all the things it’s done in our town. Growing up here, you can really see the impact it’s brought. Anywhere you go in town, the community is just like, ‘Yes! We love Georgia Southern.’ Seeing that showed me this was where I wanted to be.”

When Buford arrived at Georgia Southern, she fell in love with her community in a new way and thrived in her marketing program.

“I changed my major multiple times, but once I started in the Parker College of Business, things just made sense and everything started to flow,” Buford said. “What we were learning was practical, and I felt like I could really apply it. I loved the marketing program completely.”

Stepping into a full-time marketing role after completing her undergraduate degree didn’t fit her expectations. She realized that what she loved most about marketing, the openness and creativity, was also what made it challenging for her as a professional.

“I missed the structure that higher education has,” Buford said. “In marketing, you’re always trying to figure out what the new trend is, and it is just very gray. Every part of the job was stressful because it’s a field that changes so rapidly and constantly. I always felt like I didn’t know what I was doing because what worked yesterday often isn’t the same as what will work tomorrow. I wanted more structure.”

Thinking back on her time at Georgia Southern, Buford realized it wasn’t just the degree program that she loved, it was the community.

“While working on my marketing degree, I got to work under Gene Sherry and America Minc at the RAC,” Buford said. “When you think about wanting to develop the student completely, they are the two people who immediately come to mind for embodying that. They made even small tasks much more than they were so that we would understand work ethic, responsibility, character and our impact on each other. It wasn’t just a job — it was a community.”

The whole-person growth mindset is what Buford wanted again. She became determined to get back to the community that built her and give back in her own way.

“I realized that there are full-time positions available at Georgia Southern and that I could build a career in the community I loved, so I applied for everything,” Buford said. “I landed in the registrar’s office, and I am so thankful I did because I enjoy it so much.”

She immediately clicked with her new role, enjoying the fact that there was a process for everything.

“We deal with policy and procedure, so everything is very black and white,” Buford said. “That consistency and organization was perfect for me.”

Buford knew that she wanted to continue to build a future at Georgia Southern, so in 2024, supported by the University System of Georgia’s Tuition Assistance Program, she decided to become a Georgia Southern student once again by pursuing her master’s degree in higher education administration.

“My day-to-day work keeps me involved with many areas of the University, but you don’t always understand why or what the bigger context of that work is,” Burford said. “Going through this program helped me understand all the little pieces and how they play a role in the overall institutional function.”

The structural understanding and practical experience Buford gained through her master’s program prepared her to better support Georgia Southern students and the community as a whole.

“This program helped me see my role and my power to impact the student experience,” Buford said. “It pulled everything together into one cohesive University story.”

This December, Buford will once again walk the stage at commencement, this time as a Double Eagle.

“It felt overwhelming at times,” Buford said. “But I am excited to be a Double Eagle. Now I get to reflect and take it all in.”