Lacey
Major in Business Administration and Marketing, Westminster College
Hometown:  Salisbury

I am the oldest of three children from a single parent household.  My mother is a teacher.  My brother is currently a senior in high school and plans to attend a private institution next year.  Being the oldest of three from a single-parent household, it was always stressed to me that I could do whatever I wanted, but that I would have to pay for my higher education independently.  I am a recipient of Access Missouri as well as a Pell Grant, and with this money I am able to not only fulfill my educational goals but also be a part of the different organizations I am passionate about.  I pay for my college independently, and without this grant, I would have to work outside the college.  I would not have time to get the full college experience.

I am very involved in many organizations on campus.  I am a member of Student Foundation and Student Ambassadors, which deal with perspective students and alumni.  I have been a part of various committees through our Student Government Association, and I have held many offices within my sorority and am currently serving as the president.  I have a work study job that provides me with the funds I need to live at school.  While doing all this, I am on track to easily graduate in four years, as are many of my friends.

Each student has his or her own personal reasons for choosing the college that they decide to attend, whether it be their major, the school’s credentials, affordability, or anything else that might come into play when making that important decision that affects the rest of your life.  After visiting larger universities, I knew that was not an atmosphere conducive to my learning.  Coming from a small town, I knew that I wanted to attend a smaller private institution and would find the means to do so.  I wanted to go somewhere where I felt comfortable—a place with the same sense of tight-knit community relations I was used to.  In my search, I found that most of the colleges I enjoyed visiting were private institutions.  I wasn’t sure of my future plan, so the idea of a liberal arts education also appealed to me.  Without the tight-knit community of a small school pushing me, I would have settled for mediocrity.

Once I found Westminster College, I knew I had found my perfect fit.  I also was not exactly sure of my future plans.  I wanted to attend a liberal arts college in the hopes of finding something I was passionate about, and I did.  Upon my graduation, I hope to get a job in the marketing field and hold a position in public relations.  I plan to stay in Missouri to raise my family.  This financial program, Access Missouri, is vitally important to me.  I would have a difficult time staying in college and fulfilling my dream without Access Missouri.  It works.  I urge those in charge of the program to protect it as it currently exists.  It is important to me—and to tens of thousands of students like me.