I remember like it was yesterday. I was a senior in high school who was ready to graduate and disappear from her small town. I had big dreams of moving away, meeting new people and starting my education at a University. I was straining myself taking the SAT’s, ACT’s, interviews and filing applications that asked me every question under the sun. It’s all everyone talked or asked me about, “what college are you going to?”

I thought I had it all figured out, the college I was going to attend, the sports team I would join, until one day all of those dreams came crashing down. I got the mail and saw a letter from my first chose college. With my heart racing and my mom by my side (because who can do these things without their mom) I opened the envelope to an acceptance letter. Yes, I got accepted but mid way through the letter I came to find out I would not be receiving scholarship money and that was the deal breaker. Being eighteen years old its hard to understand the concept of big bucks and loans, I thought my parents were going to figure it out like they always did, but not this time. The sudden realization that I would be going to community college set in. I immediately broke down into tears thinking this wasn’t what was supposed to happen. I remember crying for days and feeling embarrassed and mediocre compared to my fellow classmates. I felt as if people would judge me because I was going to a community college, a school that is judged as a place where the unintelligent go. I became extremely resentful towards my parents and school in general because none of my hard work would matter; everybody gets accepted into community college.

I had a two-year plan for myself and nothing was getting in my way. I put school first for the first time in my life and felt as if I needed to prove to myself that I could do this with a positive attitude and I did just that. Today, I go to Pace University in New York City (which wasn’t my first chose college if you were wondering) and I wouldn’t be here without those two years in community college. In those two years I matured, found myself, found my passion and saved BIG money. I grew a new found respect for community college. The stereotypes were not entirely true and I along with thousands of other students can prove just that. It might have been the two longest years of my life but the things I’ve learned in those two years I wouldn’t trade for anything. So even though all I remember from that day was crying my eyes out, those tears turned into a million life lessons and amazing learning experiences