Seniors reflect upon their years at TLU

The date that all students anticipate is fast approaching - graduation.

Seniors will be closing one important chapter in their lives and beginning another. They will venture down new paths as they head into work or graduate school and life in the 'real world.'

"I'm excited to see what's next," Margie Harper, senior psychology major, said. "Figuring out what exactly the 'real world' is because I've always heard people talk about it."

The experiences seniors had at TLU will help them transition into the next phase of their lives.

"You learn who you are here," Michelle Moreno, senior biology major, said. "I know I've changed my mind on what I want to be. I've changed my major many times. In the end, you're responsible for the decisions you make, especially for finding a job, because this is your life now. You know what you want at the end of these four years; the whole experience just helps you find it."

TLU has helped seniors gain much more than academic knowledge and skills. This practical knowledge will help them in their futures.

"Mostly I've learned that I can do things on my own," Harper said. "In high school you had to rely on other people to lead you; in college it's more on yourself to get things done and to figure out what you want to do."

Branching out on their own has prepared seniors for life after graduation.

"I've gained independence and responsibility," Moreno said. "Living on campus you have to take care of certain things. When I go back home I feel like I have to ask my mom for her opinion and when I'm here I'm on my own and I don't. It's kind of like you learn 'this is me.'"

The connections seniors have made throughout their years at TLU have also helped them come into their own.

"It's been a very exciting adventure of spiritual, academic and personal growth," Ryan Avery,senior English major, said. "There've been a lot of challenges.Through it all, I've really enjoyed all the people that I've met, getting involved with student groups on campus and finding ways to be involved in the school and the community."

Seniors appreciated the support that friends, professors and other faculty members provided their collegiate experiences.

"I've learned that you are capable of a lot more than you think you are," Harper said. "At the same time it's important not to be so arrogant that you can't ask for help. I'm not used to faculty wanting to help you because it wasn't that way for me in the past. In high school it was like 'this is what you know to do to graduate' and now there are faculty who want to help me get jobs and get into [graduate] schools."

The connections are something that seniors will miss.

"I'm not going to miss all the studying," Moreno said. "I'll miss a lot of the great people I met here. You meet your close friends here. It's been such an honest four years. There's a certain something about everything that I've done here, that I'm going to miss. You're not going to be on campus anymore or have the same routine - it'll be a different living. You have to get used to it and be ready to move on."

No matter where their lives may lead, the time seniors spent at TLU will be an unforgettable part of their lives.

"I'll have nostalgia for what we've learned here and what we've put in to our time here," Avery said. "It's a little bit of missing it, but at the same time always having it with us through our memories. It's been great."