Every high school senior will one day go through the long process of college admissions. Some will be bombarded with acceptance letters while some, on the other hand, will only receive one. I was the overly excited senior that applied to every college they possibly could. I was nervous but eager to embark on the journey of college. Even though I applied to roughly ten colleges, the illustrious Spelman College was my number one choice.
Spelman College is the #1 Historically Black College or University in the US, located in the heart of Atlanta, Georgia. I was in love with the concept of the HBCU experience and how important it was for me as a black student to obtain that. I longed for the college experience portrayed on TV. You know how us black kids dreamed of going to Hillman College in A Different World, Georgia A&M University from The Quad, Mission College in School Daze, Truth University in Stomp The Yard, and Atlanta A&T in Drumline. Those fictional colleges are what we know today as North Carolina A&T, Morehouse, Alabama State, Tuskegee, Fisk, Howard, and the list goes on!
After visiting an HBCU for the first time, I was confident that I was going to spend my next four years there. The Fort Valley State University was the first I fell in love with, and the first school to accept me. I felt at home when I walked around campus. It was like everyone wanted me to succeed and they didn’t even know my name. It is a safe space for black students, and that is precisely how it feels. I left the school with a shirt that I wore just about every week, new college friends, and a job opportunity on campus if I attended.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get into Spelman.
Yes, I’m still mad, but hopeful that I might get accepted in the coming years. That very same day, I went on a college visit to the school that I now attend. I am at a predominantly White institute located in Macon, Georgia, by the name of Wesleyan College. I am enjoying the college experience, but I would be telling a lie if I said I was entirely happy. Every day, I think about how these past six weeks would have gone if I attended an HBCU. Would I be campaigning for Miss Freshman instead of just Homecoming Court? Would I be going through the Freshman year blues or just happy to be in a safe space? Yes, people have a lot to say about the negative side of these schools, but we fail to realize how important they are.
My PWI is not nor will it ever be an HBCU, but I like it here. I’m being challenged in ways like never before. My character is being built. I’m involved in my campus, and I’m learning what sisterhood means. I don’t know what tomorrow or the next four years hold, but I’m content with where I am. I know that everything has happened for a reason, and that reason has yet to be found. I am lost in the right direction. Spelman didn’t want me, but Wesleyan did.
One Wesleyan, Many Voices, and I’m finding mine.