My Kid ISN'T a College Reject!

We got the letter yesterday telling us that M got into NC A&T State University. That makes the fourth school that has accepted her; the other three are Gardner-Webb, Mars Hill, and Methodist University. Mars Hill is her top choice, but we are still waiting to hear from NC Central (my sister's alma mater) before we make a decision.

I was happy about the other schools, but I must admit that I got a little more excited when the letter from A&T came. Having my daughter attend a historically black university (HBCU) would make ABM and the rest of the family so proud. Among black families, even the ones who never attended college are impressed by names like A&T, Howard, and Spelman. For my part, I don't think it would hurt for M to get more exposure to black culture. At her age I was a girl who wasn't interested in the same music and other pursuits that captured the attention of the rest of the black kids at my school, and for a while that put me at a disadvantage when I ended up in situation where I was socializing with mostly black people (like ABM's family and friends). I don't want M to go through the same thing.

Of course, I was also happy when she got into Mars Hill because when I was in high school, it was known as THE in-state college to go to if you were planning to be a music teacher. Unfortunately, Mars Hill is a private college and as such, much more expensive than the HBCUs we applied to. M's take: "Mars Hill is my first choice, but I know that college is expensive so you pick where I should go." I don't want that to be her attitude. I want her to be excited! I think we need to do some college visits to get her psyched.