Three graduates plan to attend out-of-state universities
One lands an Ivy League spot
by Jordan K.
May 27, 2008
As graduation draws near, seniors find themselves needing to
make decisions. College choices and what to major in are often on a
senior’s mind. While the majority of Colby seniors are either going
to Colby Community College or staying in Kansas, three of them are
venturing out to new places. Johnna W., Lissa M. and Kevin L. are
all attending out- of- state colleges next fall.
Heading to the East Coast, Lissa will attend Brown University in
Providence, Rhode Island. Rhode Island is quite a ways from home,
and though Lissa’s parents are wary about her being so far away,
they are excited at the opportunity she has.
Lissa currently plans to get a dual degree in visual arts and
social science while competing in track as well. Brown is an Ivy
League university, so scholarships are not given. According to
Lissa, though, the school has a 100 percent need-based financial
aid.
Lissa will be living in the dorms, as the school requires
first-year students to live in them. Though she will be miles from
home, Lissa isn’t that nervous about being there.
“I like a challenge, and that’s what this is. I like all the
academic freedoms. Basically, they have no core curriculum for
freshman students. Plus, you graduate with an Ivy League diploma,”
Lissa said.
Now on to the South. Kevin L. will be attending Liberty University,
located 1400 miles from Colby, in Lynchburg, Virginia. He will be
majoring in aeronautics and will minor in piano.
Kevin received an academic scholarship from the school that awards
him $4,000 a semester. He is also looking into their baseball and
tennis programs.
Kevin plans to earn his degree in four years at Liberty. Unlike the
last two, Kevin will be living in an off-campus, two-bedroom
townhouse with his sister, Katie, for the first semester. He admits
to being nervous about doing his own cooking and laundry. For
Kevin’s parents, his leaving will be a little tough. He is the baby
of the family and will be so far away, but Kevin believes that
after the first couple of months, they will be fine. Liberty seems
to be his ideal college.
“They have everything I want: aviation, music, baseball, and it’s a
Christian college,” Kevin said.
The final senior will be on to Indiana in the fall. Johnna W. will
attend Purdue University in Lafayette to study public relations and
rhetorical advocacy, which is a form of advertising.
She is up for a challenge, though, because fewer than 10 percent of
students there graduate in four years. According to Johnna, she
plans to graduate in four years, with honors.
She has received the second highest scholarship from the
university. The Trustees Scholarship will award her $40,000 over
the course of four years. Lafayette is approximately 864 miles from
Colby. Johnna isn’t nervous about being so far away from home, but
she is nervous about getting there and getting lost. Her parents,
on the other hand, are a little worried about the distance.
The fact that her boyfriend will be going with her eases their
worry a bit, though. Johnna will be living in an off-campus
apartment in the fall.
After being accepted to Purdue, Johnna took a college visit there,
and her decision was made.
“I had my schools narrowed down between two colleges, Boston
University and Purdue. When I first got accepted to Purdue, I
decided to go visit and when I got there I immediately knew that
was where I wanted to be,” Johnna said. “It’s still a midwestern
environment and the people, campus, and city are amazing.”
