January College Advising Update

One of my favorite traditions here at Trinity School is having our annual First Semester in College Experience Alumni Panel event. During our first week after the holiday break Upper School students heard from the following Class of 2022 Trinity School alums:

Ellery Baker- Baylor University

Barry Cao- Texas A&M

Cole Dinger- Texas A&M

Connor Dixon- Tarleton State University 

Madeline Hartman- Trinity University

Sydney Laing- Angelo State University  

Max Mouget- Texas A&M Galveston 

Marrah Strickland- Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD)

Andrew Varner- Midland College 

This was perhaps one of the more diverse panels that we have had in terms of the types of colleges attended and the different experiences each of the panelists has had so far while in college. Cole Dinger, for instance, attends Texas A&M University and is a member of the Core of Cadets. Cole was our first-ever panelist to attend Texas A&M’s Core of Cadets. In addition to the daily academic rigor of a school like Texas A&M, Cole participates in boot-camp-like physical activities and combat training exercises on the weekends. Marrah Strickland attends one of the premier art and design schools in the country. So many of the movies and television shows, advertisements, and videos that we all enjoy have likely had a SCAD student’s involvement in them. One of Marrah’s biggest highlights this past semester was meeting and hearing from actor Miles Teller. Many of you might remember this actor’s role as Goose’s son in the blockbuster movie Top Gun. Panelists also shared some of the different clubs and organizations that they are involved with at their respective colleges. Max Mouget, for instance, plays club soccer at Texas A&M Galveston and Connor Dixon plays club volleyball, despite both not having played either sport at Trinity. Ellery Baker talked about her involvement in the French Club at Baylor, where not too long ago, she participated in singing Christmas carols at Baylor’s annual Christmas on the 5th event. Madeline Hartman discussed what it was like to get involved and meet new people at a smaller college like Trinity University. Madeline seemingly found her niche in the performing arts and has developed a wonderful group of friends that share similar interests. Sydney Laing and Andrew Varner both spoke about the benefits and challenges of working a job while attending college. In addition to going to all of the football games, Barry Cao mentioned fishing by Kyle Field as one of his favorite go-to places to relax and recharge from the rigors of academic life at Texas A&M. In fact, all of the students on the panel talked about the importance of getting good quality sleep. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine published a great article on the benefits of sleep for college students that both parents and students should read before attending college.