Category: Student Stories

Dear Senior Prospective Student,

It’s April. Crunch time. You’ve applied to schools, big and small, and have gotten your acceptances. Your college decision is looming over your head. Each day, you come up with an official decision. The next day, your official decision no longer seems so official and you are ferried back to square one.

Does this sound familiar? It certainly does to me.

I was this high school senior; I could not seem to make the decision. I applied to over 10 schools hoping that in the time between applying and May 1st (the deposit deadline), clarity of where I should spend the next four years of my life would strike me. It never did. Mid-April, I was still majorly mulling over what I should do.

My dreams had always been big. I had played sports my whole life and loved that scene. Movies pictured fun, loud, sports games at Division I schools and it seemed like everything I wanted. State schools have everything: every club, every major, every society, everything you could want, or so I thought. In November, I was convinced that I was headed to University of Maryland to join my already established friends for the best four years of our lives.

Around April, my perspective changed. I visited several of the small schools I had been accepted to and I realized the difference. The small schools, especially Grove City, felt like home. Not all students were power-walking to class with their heads down and phones out. Instead, students stopped my tour guide on her way, said hi, and asked to catch up later. Grove City’s Office of Admissions remembered my name and asked to interview me (and all the other prospective students) to see what my fit at this school could look like. They invested in me.

Could people have invested in me at a large school? Absolutely. However, it is not as easy or valued at schools with zounds of students. You are only one face in a very large crowd.

Every professor that those students have had do not stop them in the hallways to say hi; my professors do.

Their college president may not know their names; mine does.

I asked several of my senior friends, “What do you think you’re going to miss most about this school?” All their answers are the same, “The community here.” Our community between students, professors, and faculty is rich, unparalleled and cherished.

So, if I could go back and tell my 17-year-old self anything, I would tell her to jump. Don’t look back. Maybe you are drawn to a school that is totally different than the college you imagined for yourself. That’s okay.

That small school called Grove City College will surpass every expectation that you had about college and will be some of the best years of your life.

For the first time in 18 years, Grove City College has made the executive decision to have a 2.95 percent increase in their overall tuition cost. In order to offset the cost of consumable laboratory materials, the College will charge students affiliated with lab courses a $100 fee for laboratory supplies. The College will be implementing this fee in the fall of 2016, giving students enough time to process the financial increases with upcoming scheduling. Students of all majors are to be impacted by the $100 fee, through the College’s liberal arts vision, making it mandatory for each student to complete two science courses upon graduating.

According to President McNulty, there are two specific reason for the raise in lab fees. First, the consumable products affiliated with labs are of a significant expense to the College. The executive board believes that these materials ought to be paid by someone and altogether surpass the budget of what normal tuition prices cover, that being the salary of professors. Second, in terms of fairness, the lab fees mirror the principle of not charging students for the education of others. The lab fee will answers questions of impartiality, selectively targeting students who participate in labs.

Due to the increase’s premature notice, there has not been a large amount of initial feedback. McNulty desires to ensure administration, faculty and students that other departments were considered for monetary increases, which have not been pursued at this time. For example, independent studies are offered to students at no additional charge. Supplementary costs, including extra payments for professors, are paid for by the College, not students individually. McNulty states, “Affordability has taken a hit in most colleges, with the average college tuition rising 3.5 percent annually.” Grove City College strives to not lose their financial distinction by stabilizing the tuition, which they have proven successful in the last 18 years.

McNulty along with the executive board frequently reviews the budget, taking the college’s statement of affordability seriously. In order to satisfy students’ high expectations of a rich and rewarding education, engaging professors and welcoming facilities there are numerous fiscal challenges that emerge. If the College just focused on affordability, then faculty, classes and campus activities would be significantly decreased and possibly cut from the overall budget. According to McNulty, “Grove City College, from a Christian perspective, is driven toward combining affordability with academic excellence.” Such a statement has been reflected in the College’s significantly low tuition rate compared to its competitors, including private and public schools.

Lee Wishing III, Administrative Director of The Center for Vision & Values, further deliberates this concern by tapping into the College’s history. Referencing the vision of the College’s founding board of trustees, Wishing reflects upon a quote stated by Joseph Newton Pew (President of the Board of Trustees), Isaac S. Ketler (Founding President), and Samuel P. Harbison (Trustee), which can be identified on a stained glass window in Harbison Chapel. The statement reads, “We dedicate this college to the development of sound scholarship and Christian character in all aspiring youth,” Wishing confidently states that such a declaration is indicative of the trustees’ notion of providing accessible and affordable education to all aspiring youth.

“Despite the ever-present tension of providing a great education within affordable means, Grove City College from a business perspective has been and continues to be a remarkable place,” states Wishing. From Pew’s original vision of no federal funding to the current increasing inflation rates of today’s economy, the College has remained strong in its roots. Opposed to being federally funded, the College’s revenue primarily streams from fundraising and student tuition and fees. Grove City College is driven towards exposing false perceptions of value and personal validations by offering students an academic experience where the integration of faith, learning and financial practice is ever so present. 

Picture found from Google images.