Peck visits campus
The teenager who once graced the screens of many in the early 2000s made his way to Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK) on Tuesday, Jan. 24, as a part of this year’s Lectureship Series hosted by Student Engagement and Campus Life (SECL).
Josh Peck, known for his role as Josh Nichols on the hit Nickelodeon series “Drake and Josh,” spoke to students in the Jones Auditorium in a Q&A fashion with Alumni Engagement Coordinator Monica Hysquierdo and student Ferny Garcia emceeing the event.
Students lined up for hours to guarantee their spot in the auditorium to see Peck speak.
“I think it’s important to understand what people in college are thinking about and passionate about to keep you relevant and understand what’s important,” Peck said.
Peck, who recently reprised his role in the second season of “How I Met Your Father,” spoke to students about a range of topics, from rock bottom to new beginnings, life changes and career highlights.
“I feel like college students, I think high school is probably where it starts… we put so much pressure on ourselves to deliver and achieve and what we do now is gonna pay dividends for the next 20 years of my life, when in reality I think it’s important that we just kind of take it easy on ourselves and be nice to ourselves,” he said.
Before the lecture event, a meet and great was held for students who won tickets by entering into SECL’s challenge of answering questions about Peck correctly.
The meet and greet took place in the Ben Bailey Art Gallery at which a handful of students had the opportunity to meet Peck, take a picture with him and get his autograph.
“He was like one of my biggest inspirations growing up; I watched him all the time, it’s like a very bonded thing, even though I’ve never actually met him, which is so weird but like yeah, it’s just crazy. I’m very excited to meet him,” Alexis Cantu, who attended the meet and greet, said.
Cantu often got in fights with her siblings over watching “Drake and Josh” and contemplated saying his famous catch phrase “hug me brother” when she met him.
Like Cantu, several students grew up watching Peck on TV.
Martin De Los Santos, a TAMUK student who lined up early for the lecture, said he has watched Peck his whole life.
“That was the thing that shaped me, who I am today,” he said of Peck’s work on screen.
Peck first started his acting career in early 2000 with the movie “Snow Day.”
“I like getting out of the bubble of L.A. I like getting to go to the parts of the U.S. that normally I wouldn’t get to go, meeting beautiful people that are smart can give you also a different perspective on life. I feel lucky that I get to do that,” he said.
