As Lauren Frost contemplated her future during her senior year at Wagoner High School, she had pretty much decided that Northeastern State University was not going to be her next stop. But thanks to a perfect storm of circumstances, this fall the senior-to-be will be captain of the NSU Pom Squad and she couldn’t be happier.

“Most of my family had attended NSU and I thought I wanted to try something else,” said Frost who was into competitive dance during her growing up years.

Enter circumstance number one.

“My dance instructor during my senior year was Lauren Perez who is also the Pom Squad coach at NSU,” said Frost. “We talked about the Pom Squad, and it piqued my interest.”

Then there’s circumstance number two.

“I applied for the President’s Leadership Class scholarship which came with a full-ride to go to NSU. There were like 250 people who applied, and I was one of 20 that was chosen. It was an opportunity I just couldn’t pass up,” stated Frost. 

Following some meetings and a two-day tryout, Lauren was chosen to be on the Pom Squad her freshman year and has flourished under the watchful eye of Perez. As captain of the squad this coming year, Lauren will lead a diverse group of girls with different backgrounds.

“We have girls who have danced a lot like me, some who have only danced a few years, girls with cheer backgrounds, and former athletes looking for something different,” said Frost. “Lauren (Perez) has a busy life with three little kids so I’ll need to be a leader who can help with the detail work for the squad. I think it’s my job to make sure no one gets left behind or stressed out and make sure everybody feels like they have a place.”

The Communication major is certainly glad she changed her mind about NSU.

“I love the NSU community and, though I was concerned about losing old friends, I found so many people that were easy to connect with here and now I can’t imagine being anywhere else.”