When I began to look for a college, I was not desperately trying to escape my life at home. With two younger siblings I adored, friends I admired, and parents I respected, I didn’t see a reason to leave the northeast. At the time, my life seemed complete. My hometown of Lexington, Massachusetts breed’s students for local colleges; If you weren’t attending one of the Ivy Leagues that New England offered, UMass Amherst, Boston University, and University of New Hampshire were common destinations for graduates.

Thankfully, I have people in my life who saw a different path for me, and believed in me enough to introduce me to a university that would place me outside of my comfort zone and offer me opportunities I would never have taken otherwise. The admirable couple who introduced me to the University became valued mentors and friends as they guided and encouraged me through my years on campus.

In high school your parents help you with life. Their friend’s kids become your friends; you play piano because your mother played; you play hockey because your father wish he had played. College is about you making your own mistakes, your own success.

I left the cautious and comfortable high schooler in Massachusetts and decided that I would embrace the Mackenzie I was afraid to be before I came to Texas. I sat myself next to strangers, smiled at new faces, enthralled myself in new organizations, and found myself…happy.

I found those friends who know me from my perfume scent, to my favorite quote, to my life goals; I’ve learned from the respected professors who have guided me from bad grades to job recommendations; and I have become the President of my sorority- a foreign concept for a girl from Massachusetts!

SMU gave me the opportunity to grow and introduced me to experiences that will benefit me long after my four years at SMU have come and gone. As my father said: “Go Stangs”.