How I've Grown

It's totally weird to think about, but my first semester at college is just about up! The time has flown by here! It's been fun, nerve-wracking, and challenging at times. It has helped me to grown scholastically and individually. I've learned a lot about circuits, infinite series, my friends, and myself.

As we age, we naturally(or usually) mature. But when we get here to college that process gets accelerated more than usual. We are forced to live, not necessarily on our own, but apart from what we've grown up with. I've grown as a person by adapting to this new environment. I now do my own laundry(or just pile it up until I can take it home to mom), wake myself up, and make sure I'm at the right places at the right time. My mom has always had to wake me up for school or whatever activity, but now it's on me and my alarm clock. You don't have to option of falling back asleep until mom comes back in because she's not here. Also, time management is a new place I've grown. I now have to make sure I don't spend too much time playing socializing or working out or playing video games because there is always something that needs to be done. Having to learn this ability wasn't scary at all. It felt liberating to finally be able to set up my schedule when I want.

I've also grown socially. Coming from a small town, everybody pretty much knew me, whether it was from sports, school, or church. Conversation was easy to come by and wasn't hard to maintain. But coming here is different. There are so many people here that you feel like you can just get lost in it all. People don't really know who you are and you have to go out and make new friends. I wasn't scared of this, but I knew it would draw me out of my comfort zone a little bit. But after a semester of introducing myself and having new conversations, I feel like I am a better social person because of it.

Here at ISU I've definitely grown as a person. I've grown in many different ways. I know view myself as a person who can take care of himself. I can talk with most people pretty easily. I can be confident in my self that I'm making the right decisions for the present and the future. And that is the only way I can keep growing.

What the Hixson Award Means to Me

The Hixson Award has a double dip of sweetness for what it means to me. Award recipients must demonstrate financial need, having faced tough challenges, and have the potential to succeed. You can see why this award could make any proud, but it also has hidden value, the people who fund it, run it, and who you meet in it are comparable to the money.
Of course, the award has a great impact on me because of the financial security it brings me. Receiving this award was a big factor in my decision to come here. My family does not have the resources to help me out with schooling so this falls on me. I would be burdened with a lot of college debt after school, but because of this award I will not be so in debt, and so for that, I am, funnily enough, in debt to Christina for it.
As I mentioned before, the money is definitely the main focus of the scholarship, but what sets this scholarship apart is the people. The people who fund the scholarship care about us, the mentors and advisors care about us, and the other recipients care too. There is such a feeling of support that you can't find anywhere else on campus and that means the world. The advisors and mentors are always checking up on us and making sure we are succeeding to the best of our abilities. If we aren't, they offer advice and tell us ways to help improve, be it their own knowledge or referring us to a campus service that will help.

The Hixson award is a point of pride for myself. It is a great program to be involved in and it is an honor to have received the award. Its financial assistance has allowed for me to attend college without having to live with the fact that I will have thousands of dollars of debt afterwards, and that peace of mind can't be appreciated enough. So thank you, Christina and all of the Hixson advisors and mentors.