I did not go to Florida College, but I came very close. I was planning on going to FC and then transferring to Truman State University in Missouri. I applied to and visited both schools. Compared to Truman's library, FC's was tiny and pathetic. Truman seemed to have a much more rigorous academic program. With the scholarships that Truman and the state of Missouri offered me, I was able to go to school for almost nothing. FC's out of state tuition and meager scholarships would have put my family in serious debt.

But the most important reason that I didn't go to FC was that I was ready to be an adult. It seemed to me that if I went to FC I would be treated like a child. FC had dress codes, curfews, mandatory chapel services and a general sense that critical thinking was discouraged. By the time I graduated high school, my parents had given me a lot of freedom and responsibility and encouraged me to think for myself. Going to FC or any conservative religious school would have been a big step back for me.

I almost changed my mind during my last trip to FC summer camp. A lot of my friends were headed to Florida in just a few weeks and I was concerned about falling out of touch with them and missing out on the spiritual benefits of a Christian college. I was caught up in the emotion of the camp experience. By the end of my bus ride home I realized that FC was not for me. I went to Truman and I've never regretted it.