Maddie Yarborough, formerly known for being StuCo president of New Haven High School, as well as cheer captain for the Shamrocks, graduated in 2014 and moved on to college. Recently, she discussed her transition from high school to college.
Before graduating in 2014, Maddie was unsure where she wanted to go to college, until a “pretty pamphlet” came in the mail, and that one school caught her eye. She then checked out the Northwest Missouri State University website to get an even clearer picture. Once it popped up, she said,“The campus was breathtakingly beautiful with all of the trees and nature surrounding it. They’re a “Green Campus” too; I mean, there are seriously recycling stations everywhere and compost in the cafeteria.” Maddie then went on to talk about how Northwest has a elementary school on campus for her to do observations for her freshmen year, “Thats when I knew I had found my school.”
Transitioning from high school to college can be tough for students like Maddie. After all, New Haven High School consists of about 180 students, which is very small, and everyone ends up running into each other in some way. However, at Northwestern University there are about 6,720 students enrolled each year. This was a major jump, but Maddie handled it well. “I am very use to talking with strangers and making friends with them. Being alone on the first day or even first week wasn’t an issue for me.”
Now, Maddie stays in a dorm room with her friend Bailey, whom she met through StuCo. They get along very well; Maddie calls it, “quite the cup of tea.” Though it is different than sharing a room with a sibling, the dorm system has led her to some of her greatest friends.
Curriculum at New Haven High doesn’t seem to quite match Northwestern’s, either. For Maddie Yarborough, one of the biggest things she misses is paper! “College is all about saving the laptops and saving the trees!” When asked about homework, Maddie replied, “Homework in college is just flat-out weird. The assignments are always online, and most of the time, it is just reading an assigned number of pages from a book, and you have to hope you remember all the information!” Even though this is a crazy, different lifestyle for Maddie, she has found ways to cope.
For example, she really loves being outdoors. She even does her homework outside! “My friends back home have kinda given me the nickname ‘Hippy,’ but really, it’s just who I am; I just never got to express it.” When she isn’t doing her homework outside, she says she likes to, “take naps under my favorite tree, play frisbee on the weekends, and write in the sand.”
As you can see, she has been able to make the transition from high school to college relatively easily. While doing all the school work and hanging out by trees is going on, funny stories also occur: “I made a friend, MikeMike, (that's what his name really is) and he decided it would be cool to ask me to join him and his freshmen football teammates in their karaoke afternoon session that they held every week. He had asked me to sing "Shake it Off" with him .... I showed up at the football classroom, and MikeMike was wearing a white bunny onesie and a blonde wig. I almost died just looking at him! We walked into the classroom, and it was all boys. That's when I got nervous, because I was the only girl and non-football player there. We sang in front of all of them, and I was video-taped and...talked about for being cool. It was hilarious!”
We wish Maddie the best of luck while pursuing her dreams at college, and hopefully she can share her fun personality with everyone at her new school!
-by Tenille Duessler
Transitioning from high school to college can be tough for students like Maddie. After all, New Haven High School consists of about 180 students, which is very small, and everyone ends up running into each other in some way. However, at Northwestern University there are about 6,720 students enrolled each year. This was a major jump, but Maddie handled it well. “I am very use to talking with strangers and making friends with them. Being alone on the first day or even first week wasn’t an issue for me.”
Now, Maddie stays in a dorm room with her friend Bailey, whom she met through StuCo. They get along very well; Maddie calls it, “quite the cup of tea.” Though it is different than sharing a room with a sibling, the dorm system has led her to some of her greatest friends.
Curriculum at New Haven High doesn’t seem to quite match Northwestern’s, either. For Maddie Yarborough, one of the biggest things she misses is paper! “College is all about saving the laptops and saving the trees!” When asked about homework, Maddie replied, “Homework in college is just flat-out weird. The assignments are always online, and most of the time, it is just reading an assigned number of pages from a book, and you have to hope you remember all the information!” Even though this is a crazy, different lifestyle for Maddie, she has found ways to cope.
For example, she really loves being outdoors. She even does her homework outside! “My friends back home have kinda given me the nickname ‘Hippy,’ but really, it’s just who I am; I just never got to express it.” When she isn’t doing her homework outside, she says she likes to, “take naps under my favorite tree, play frisbee on the weekends, and write in the sand.”
As you can see, she has been able to make the transition from high school to college relatively easily. While doing all the school work and hanging out by trees is going on, funny stories also occur: “I made a friend, MikeMike, (that's what his name really is) and he decided it would be cool to ask me to join him and his freshmen football teammates in their karaoke afternoon session that they held every week. He had asked me to sing "Shake it Off" with him .... I showed up at the football classroom, and MikeMike was wearing a white bunny onesie and a blonde wig. I almost died just looking at him! We walked into the classroom, and it was all boys. That's when I got nervous, because I was the only girl and non-football player there. We sang in front of all of them, and I was video-taped and...talked about for being cool. It was hilarious!”
We wish Maddie the best of luck while pursuing her dreams at college, and hopefully she can share her fun personality with everyone at her new school!
-by Tenille Duessler
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