The beginning of the end...

As this title appropriately shows, tomorrow will be the first day of my last undergraduate semester at Texas A&M University. Like most soon-to-be college graduates, I have been thinking about the past three years, what they have meant to me and what the future holds. I am eager for what is coming and really cannot wait to move on towards pursuing my goals, but I am still nervous to be finished with this milestone. Here is a little reflection of my journey through A&M...

Freshman Year

This year was exciting and new. I started out as a business major and knew relatively few people. I remember thinking, on one of my first trecks across campus, that I would never be able to walk from class to class and pass people I knew. This place was so big! However, I quickly learned that campus really isn't so big after all, and I walk to class each day passing numerous friends and classmates. :) I also had a rough time finding my niche the first semester. I joined 3 organizations and tried to find my place. I made GREAT grades (Dean's List) and met some terrific people. The second semester was the one that began to change everything. I decided business was not for me. While I was good at it, I just didn't have a heart for it. I didn't know what to major it at this point, but was hopeful that something would stimulate my curiosity. I also joined a service organization and Fish Camp. These two organizations changed my life. I found out just how much I love service, leadership, mentoring young adults and in general, helping others. In addition to these organizations, I began volunteering at local elementary schools tutoring students in math and reading, and I worked at the West Campus Library.

Sophomore Year

The very first day of class, I changed my major to English rhetoric and added a psychology minor. I had decided that I wanted to help change the lives of students. This was a great decision that has had an influence on everything else I have done. I became a leader in my service organization, had the best time of my life as a Fish Camp counselor and joined at teacher organization. I continued tutoring elementary students. My classes kept me very busy. I got to take literature, writing, Spanish, psychology and some basic classes. I became a Fish Camp counselor for the second time. Then, I spent the summer following my sophomore year working camps at the Children's Museum, teaching students at Sylvan (best job ever!) and taking more classes.

Junior Year

This year was, without a doubt, the hardest and most significant of all my undergraduate years. This is the year that changed the course of my life. I am an instrinsically motivated person who accomplishes everything I set out to do. Things that are important to me permeate my life and take precedence over all other things. My junior year, the plan I had for my life fell apart, granted it was a plan that did not revolve around myself or my best interests. For the first time since coming to college, I had to evaluate where my life was going, where I wanted it to go and what I wanted to accomplish. I had to be very selfish and think of myself, completely. I was all set and prepared to graduate in May of 2009, but now I wasn't so sure. I did not have enough time to apply to graduate school and didn't know what I wanted to do. So, I added a business administration minor (ironic, I know) to keep me in school until December, long enough to figure out what to do.

The good things from my junior year, were that I was a leader in my service organization and got to plan numerous service projects for the local community to promote literacy and education (my passion). Secondly, I got to serve as a leader in my teacher organization which gave me a greater depth of knowledge about my future profession. I got to attend numerous leadership conferences and take more exciting and interesting classes. I worked as a writing tutor for the athletic department on campus, a substitute teacher and an instructor at Sylvan and still tutored children at local elementary schools. I took one class that summer, worked, volunteered and relaxed in preparation for my sernior semester. Most importantly during my junior year, I turned 21 and got my Fightin' Texas Aggie Ring (A-WH10P!).

Senior Semester

FINALLY!! So, tomorrow is the big day that marks the beginning of my senior semester. I will be graduating December 18th or 19th (we find out in September) and cannot wait! I am still a leader in my service organization, teacher organization and the memorial student center and I'm still working as a writing tutor and tutoring elementary students. I'm living in a house with some great girls and taking some of the most interesting classes yet. I applied to graduate school and am waiting for a response, but I get to take my first graduate class this semester! I am also fulfilling the requirements to gain my teacher certification. This semester is going to be a blast and I cannot wait until tomorrow.

A lot has happened in three years. I'm sad, but excited to be done with my bachelor's degree and to graduate. In the spring, I will be student teaching and beginning my master's degree in curriculum and instruction. From there, I hope to finish my master's degree quickly and move on to my PhD. This has been my ultimate goal for a long time and my motivation for everything I do. I hope to obtain a job that allows me to work in a school district helping students of all ages overcome reading and learning disabilities while teaching classes at a local university. :)

Stay tuned for what comes next...

-Tracey