A friendly transfer

After graduating high school, I was not ready to pack up and move away. I was residing in my hometown, Monroe, N.Y., a suburb about an hour north of New York City. Choosing a college to spend the next four years of my life seemed too much, not to mention most of my first choice schools were not local.
So in the summer of 1999, I registered at a local community college. I have always known I wanted to work with children, so I chose a degree that would get me closer to that dream.
After the summer of my freshman year, I was being told to start looking into transfer schools. In the fall of 2000, my best friend and I decided to take a trip up to Oneonta, N.Y. We made it about an hour before the next tour was being given. A warm smile and a feeling of comfort greeted us. My fears of transferring slowly dissipated, and all that remained was an excitement that could not be contained. After the tour, my friend and I met with a transfer counselor to inquire about transferring credits and applying to the school. To our surprise, he was straightforward and to the point. We were told that it would be in our best interest to transfer as soon as possible. I didn’t have to be told twice.
After the application process, my friend and I were off to Oneonta in January 2001. We were roommates, and our journey began. Because of the specified childhood-education degree, both my friend and I lost credits toward our specific degrees. But we were not more than a semester behind. The friends who surrounded us eased the transition into classes. I was homesick, naturally, but the relationships that I formed got me through that. There were other transfer students in the room next to mine who had been there for a semester prior. They helped me in decisions about classes and how to adjust. The next semester, my roommate and I had a suite with four other girls from our hall. Now, we’re in an apartment downtown.
I feel that my college experience, though it’s not over yet, has been as fulfilling as anyone who has started out in a four-year school. When I look back, I have no regrets. My choices have made me who I am today, have brought me to great places and have given me friends who enrich my life more than I can express.

Jessica L. Morrow, 21, transferred from Rockland Community College to SUNY College at Oneonta. She is a childhood-education major.

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