When I was growing up, every Saturday I’d watch the Ohio State football games with my parents. I’d always wear OSU stuff the Friday before the TTUN game and get excited about it. Ever since then, I pictured myself going to OSU for college. I remember in high school, some of my peers had no idea where they wanted to go to college and I thought that was crazy because I knew I was going to The Ohio State University.

I filled out the application for OSU during October of my senior year. It felt like forever until they got back to me. Once January came, I felt like I was checking every day to see if I got in. Well one day, I got a response. I started to read “We regret to inform you…” and I lost it. I never thought getting in would be a problem.

So what now? Fortunately for me, my father made me apply to two other schools in case this happened. But I didn’t want to go to those schools, I wanted to be a Buckeye. After talking to an OSU recruiter in Cleveland, he suggested that I attend the branch campus in Mansfield. So my parents and I got in the car and drove an hour and a half down to Mansfield to check out the campus. It was small: 5 buildings and a bookstore. But I figured it just had to work for a year.

I learned a lot that year in class. But there is also a lot of things that Mansfield did for me outside of classes that I would never have thought about before I moved in.

1. Taught me how to manage my time

I scheduled my classes so that every day I’d end at 12:30. I also performed in three plays on campus. Luckily, there isn’t a whole lot to do in Mansfield, so not much distracted me. I learned how to balance my time between class, homework, cooking/eating (there isn’t a dining hall), rehearsal, and sleep. Not to mention other things like social life and relaxing.

2. Introduced me to college classes

Even though I wasn’t in Columbus, I was still in Ohio State classes that were at a much faster pace than my high school classes. It really got me prepared for when I transferred.

3. How to plan my meals

Mansfield doesn’t have dorms; their on-campus living is apartment style with full kitchens. The only on-campus dining we had was a tiny market that I ate at every weekday for lunch. All other meals I had to cook or eat out. So I had to plan what I was going to eat, how much to get, etc…

4. Brought me life-long friends

I didn’t know a single person going to Mansfield when I moved in. If I hadn’t gone to Mansfield, I wouldn’t have the friends that I have now, and I can’t imagine my life without them. Currently, I’m living with two friends from Mansfield, and next semester I’ll be living with five of them. We’ve had some fun and crazy memories over the past two years, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything. I really thank Mansfield for bringing us together.