I went to a decent sized high school in Anchorage, Alaska where the population of the school always fluctuated between 1,600 and 1,800 students. Since I started there as a freshman I took mainly Honor/AP courses, and when required to would take the necessary courses to graduate like economics, government, and Alaskan Studies. No matter what form of class I was in I always felt like I was treated as just a number. I think that was my biggest problem in my high school was the lack of individualized attention that students were provided. Granted, I do understand, that having 35+ students for multiple classes in a single classroom makes it hard for teachers to become invested in individual students, but I feel like that is what defines how students feel about their education.

I was never thinking of applying to Centenary, to be honest, because I had never heard of the school. I had my sights set on much larger schools that were prominent on the East and West coasts, and Louisiana was a hard pass for me. However, the more I grew disenchanted with my time being in larger classes the more I looked to see what colleges provided a smaller class size. Centenary championed their small class sizes, and it was to me the tipping point that convinced me that this is where I need to go.

I wanted a small, close environment where I would actually get to know my classmates and get to know my professors beyond just the academic environment. I mean I felt like if I could find someone that would invest their time into my interests then maybe, just maybe they could help go further in life. Like all other incoming freshman I was a confused, not really knowing what exactly I wanted to major in, and I did not know what I wanted out of my life following the next four years. Outside of the support from my parents it was the professors that helped guide me to what I want to do in life now.

A small school like Centenary isn’t for everyone. It just isn’t. But, it was and remains to be the right school for me. I feel like the relationships that I make here with my classmates and professor’s helps form little families in the respective departments. We eat their houses, grab dinner together, or go on adventures throughout the south on projects for our classes. They get to know us, they are not forced to, it just happens naturally. Because of the small class sizes the professors are naturally inclined to seek out our interests, and to help us go further to pursue our passion. I am not a number here, I am Gage.

That has made all the difference. It is because of the support of the faculty and staff here that I am pursuing the scholarships in England and law school. I don’t think I would of done either if I wasn’t introduced to them, or had the push from my professors to help me go after them. No matter the department the treatment from professors remains constant. Caring and resourceful. They bend over backwards to help us get internships, scholarships, research grants, jobs, and acceptance in more advanced levels of academia. I know for me, and I am sure that many other students echo this sentiment, that we are thankful for everything they do. At larger, state universities this kind of treatment and attention to individual students is unparalleled. I mean when you sit in an intro level class here with 15 students compared to one at a bigger school with 300 students it becomes obvious. The professor will never know all of their names, and the ability to contact them is usually through their graduate students who are TAs. If I wanted to contact my professors I shoot them a text or call, since they give them out on the syllabus, or I just walk over to their office. It’s convenient and nice to see how willing they are to be here for us. I mean I know its their job, but they go above job requirements to ensure that we can become the best version of ourselves.

I guess what I am trying to say is that being recognized is a good feeling. Being a number takes away, or at least it did for me, the notion of being an individual. There seemed nothing special about me, or my peers we were just names on an attendance list that my high school teachers repeated at the beginning of each class. The professors are a special breed here at Centenary. They see our potential when we may not see it ourselves, and they act on it in a heartbeat. I love all the professors I have had, and the ones I have currently. They provide a new dynamic to everything, and if you really invest time with them they can show you a whole new world.