When you’re in college and the school year is about to come to an end, you now have options. One is to work the whole summer to make money and pay for school (tuition, books, room and board); have an internship lined up that will help you get real world experience; or, take summer classes and get those electives out of the way. Of course, you’ll need to balance a part time job with those summer classes or that internship.
For me, I chose option number three.
In the summer of 2001, while living at HGA, I decided to enroll in summer courses at the local community college. It was a win-win for me at the time because I would still see my friends at HGA and, knock off a few credits so it would be easier for me to graduate. Most college classes are fifteen weeks during a normal semester. During the summer, they’re condensed into five weeks. Therefore, I had a lot to learn in a short amount of time.
My classes ended up going well that summer and I got to meet students from other universities, like Ohio State and Penn State. These people were in the same boat I was, saving money and time by taking these classes during the Summer, instead of paying more at their school for the same class during the Fall or Spring semesters. It helps to do your first two years at community college or a branch campus (Penn State New Ken or Pitt Greensburg, for example) before transferring to the main campus, if that’s what your plan is.
That was the only summer that I was on campus. Every other semester, I went home and either worked or did nothing. My first real job, actual job, and summer job was working at the old Park Classic Diner. In those days, I couldn’t wait to go back to school once August rolled around. I look back on my college days and always thought of school (whether it was HGA or Slippery Rock University) as my safe space and my comfort zone. Hence, why it was so hard to be away from it, especially after I graduated in 2005.
Knowing what I know now, I’d have appreciated working at Park Classic Diner a whole lot more. I would have Maybe it would have become a stepping stone to something better down the road. In those days, I would have taken any work experience I could get.
Stylish 🍒 