Letter of Introduction

     As a man in his fifties when deciding to further his education, over three decades since graduating high school, the prospect of college was initially a little intimidating. How odd would it feel interacting with students younger than my son? I had done quite well in grades 1-12 (when wanting to) and kept an interest in reading and learning in general since then. The question was, would I still have the energy and drive needed for the task? There was only one way to find out. Enrolling and accepted into Cape Fear Community College, in Wilmington, NC, they gave me credit for English in my placement tests, but I had to take a remedial algebra class. That course, to date, was the hardest one I've encountered, but math was always my weakest subject. Finishing with a “C,” it fortunately did not count against my GPA. I only had one other on-campus course there (Critical Thinking) and did the remainder of my courses online. Graduating with a 3.91 GPA, it was a very proud moment; for my wife, my friends and family, and most of all myself. In a wide variety of subjects, ranging from geology to sociology, computers to American government, I had proven worthy of the challenge and performed well.

     My community college experience was so rewarding that I wanted to continue beyond it, so started considering my options for a transfer to a four-year institution. UNC-Wilmington was one of them, since it was close by, but I had learned from online classes that I actually preferred that format, and so the proximity of the college wasn't crucial. The reason that UNC-Greensboro became my choice is mainly just a bit of luck‒ when I had done an online search for UNCW, UNCG had also shown up lower on the list of results. I clicked there on a whim, found the BLS online program as I browsed, and it sounded like a great fit for me. I had acquired a broad range of interests and knowledge over my life, and Liberal Studies seemed the right forum, both to exhibit what I know and to greatly enhance it.

     My experience has been almost totally positive. (My only real failures or obstacles have been of a technological nature; there's nothing so frustrating as spending several hours on an essay and having it suddenly vanish into the ether). The results so far? On paper: All “A”s (including four “A+”s). I've found myself highly (my wife says “obsessively”) motivated to do my best and have consistently tried to do just that. But as important as the grades are to me, I feel like the greatest benefit has been something a little harder to define. It's a synergy that has developed from the immersion in all the various subjects in the humanities.

     I feel sometimes like a small-scale Renaissance man, able to interconnect various points from all over the spectrum of the arts, sciences, philosophies and history. Surprising myself, especially in the discussion boards (perhaps my favorite aspect of college) with all the “stuff” I can summon up. I used to have a vague desire to be a writer. Now, although there's still much to learn, I can see it as a true potential for my later life. That would be an even more important accomplishment in my eyes than my many successful years as a musician‒ and that's saying a lot.

     College has changed my life, here in a later part of it when most people don't experience such transformation. I'm going to take it as far as I can run with it, attempting a double-major here at UNCG (with a BA is Philosophy to bookend the BLS degree), and then hopefully on into a low-residency MFA/Creative Writing program at Warren Wilson College. There will be a serendipitous quality to all of this: I earned an Associate's degree at an NC coastal institution; will earn my Bachelors degrees from a mid-state university; and will then climb into the mountains for the Masters. I'm moving up in

the world.