Jacquel Arnsperger

A Different Path

  I don't have the typical college student story. I am 23, and after attending two other colleges, I have finally ended up here at Pacific Lutheran University where I intend to finish my Bachelors Degree in business with a concentration in marketing and economics. After high school my path was very undecided, but maintaining a 3.67 GPA through school gave me reason to want to continue my education. Not to mention that I thouroghly enjoy school and had a thirst for knowledge, new experiences, and a desire to better understand myself and the world around me.

     I enrolled at a community college in my home town a year later. I liked the fact that I was in school but not that the level of education was as if I was back in high school. So with a year under my belt, I decided to take what I had and was accepted into Portland State University. Unfortunately, that didn't last long either. I wasn't prepared for the big city, the large university (like I had led myself to believe) and without any support, I found myself floundering in unknown waters. Soon enough, a new opportunity came into sight and  knowing that I needed a change, I decided to take a risk and  leap again.

     I knew this time was going to be different, and it was. I moved up here with a positive mindset of being whom ever I wanted to be, leaving behind any altered, preconceived perceptions of who I thought I was, and becoming the person I wanted to be and could be proud of. I've learned a lot about myself in this past year and will continue to grow.  Its an amazing feeling of accomplishment of ones self to define self-independence.

     So here I am, currently at PLU and loving it. I have finally found a place where I feel like I belong and can be successful. My journey may be taking longer, with a few extra detours, but I now know; I will get out what I am willing to put in. Even though my path had led into darkness, I never gave up and have again found the light.