Why Guiding the Journey?

I don't know about you but I felt lost my last years of high school. Everyone seemed to be going somewhere. Had something to do, somewhere to be. College admission letters were coming in for a lot of people and I still had no clue. The whole college admissions process was a mystery to me--a dark shadowy hole.

If this sounds familiar, then you can relate. I was born in Virginia. I went to elementary school, some of middle school and high school in Maryland. I had friends, but no one really talked about SATs, the college application process or even going to college for that matter. So, you can imagine my confusion when all of a sudden, everyone seemed to be going to a University and they all seemed to be excited about it! I wanted to be excited too. But I couldn't shirk the disappointment I felt when my name and prospective college wasn't on the board I passed in the hallway on the way to AP Modern History class each Wednesday at school.

I was smart. I was in AP history for goodness sake! I was a bookworm. A nerd. Why wasn't I going to a four year university too? It really wasn't entirely my fault. In hindsight, I know why starting the college application process wasn't intuitive to me. I was raised my mom. She is from Ghana and she has always had big aspirations for my brother and I. But in chasing the American dream, she worked herself to the bone. All the time. Sometimes two jobs simultaneously. My mom (and all my relatives) just assumed I'd be going to college after high school. But no one really knew what steps I had to take to get into college or, for that matter, when to start the process. Who knew the college application process started the summer before 11th grade?! I certainly didn't. And I know I'm not alone.

I'm happy to share more of my journey in the weeks to come. But honestly, programs like Guiding the Journey are vitally important, and I wish it was around when I was in high school. Guiding the Journey is for people like me who aspire to go to college and have everything it takes to go, but need direction in how to get there.

It's also an organization that understands some of my cultural hangovers. Because they understand where I'm coming from, they help folks like us figure out how to deal when parents insist that you go to medical school at Harvard, when you want to take a shot at George Mason's modern dance program. "Wahallah!"

I'm interested in hearing some of your stories and challenges. Leave 'em in the comments section.