Last semester, I participated in a panel discussion for high-school counselors from around the country who were visiting Longwood. This is something completely new to me. I’ve made presentations in class, but it’s different when you’re talking to people who are older, and it’s a really serious environment.
They asked general questions like where are you from, what are you studying and what do you like about Longwood. I told them that I like the atmosphere at Longwood where everyone is so open and so nice. The faculty give you a warm feeling. It’s completely different from the feeling I got at some other schools like Old Dominion.
Longwood is really diverse in its academic programs—it has art, business, biology, nursing. Before when I thought about diversity, I thought a bigger school like VCU would have more programs. But Longwood is very diverse.
When they asked me about what would you change about Longwood if you could, it really made me think. What could you really change about this school? It’s a really good school. I said the dining hall. People kind of laughed. The food has its days when it’s good, but it also has its days when it isn’t good.
Then they asked me, since you’re from Richmond, a big city, is it hard for you to find something to do in Farmville. I said no—depending on the group of friends that you have. My group of friends, we always have something to do. There are about 20 of us—a mixture of girls and guys—and there’s never a dull moment. We don’t do anything wild—but we always try to have fun. One Sunday, we went riding four-wheelers. The week before that we went to Lynchburg. A couple of weeks before that, we all took a trip to Norfolk. In Farmville, we go out to eat a lot.
I love it here because it’s quiet. No crime. Everything’s in walking distance. And I like that—you don’t see that every day. I don’t need a car, except when I want to go home.
I actually enjoyed the experience of being on the panel. I was a little bit terrifiying with the on-the-spot questions. But it was a great experience, and I wouldn’t mind doing it again.