On Thursday March 8, 2018 students at Technology High school left on a two day college tour. The first stop on the tour was Dickinson College, a private and highly selective liberal arts institution. All thirty five students had a brief breakfast and then took a tour of the campus. Most students were most captivated by the newly built, Kline athletic center and the close proximity between buildings. Before long, students were once again on the road to Morgantown but, not without stopping at noteworthy locations. This road trip featured a stop at Coopers Rock which is considered the Grand Canyon of the East Coast. Once students had arrived to Morgantown they were taken to the Marriott hotel to settle in for the night. The next day, followed with a long list of events to accomplish, as part of the West Virginia University tour. During the tour, the prospective medical students had a chance to tour the medical facilities and sit with the head of the medical department. While on tour students got to see the medical labs for surgery and the manikins that are used in other medical areas. The students whom were interested in forensics also had a chance to sit with the head of the Forensics Department and tour the forensic labs. This experience exposed the technology high school students to blood spatter analysis and how to properly process fingerprints. The prospective business and economics students got a chance to sit with the head of that department and talked about not only having business as your major but also as a double major. The prospective Engineer students got to see the 2018 Chevy Camaro rebuild and look at the robotics department while also seeing the Coal and mineral Departments. Later on, students visited the basketball hall of champions and stepped foot on the 65,000 seat football stadium on campus. They then had an opportunity to ride the PRT, which is a monorail system that goes from campus to campus. All in all the students had a great time visiting both schools. This sentiment is best captured below:
“I was originally very skeptical about the college tours and wasn’t interested in attending either. Part of my disinterest stemmed from the lack of exposure and information about the universities to begin with. My adventure began early on March 8 when I visited Dickinson College. There was a feeling that radiated from the campus itself. It was a small and suburban like atmosphere that felt like a stroll down a historical town. During the tour I learned about the exchange programs that are offered to multiple countries and a bit of the history behind the college. Even after leaving Dickinson, I knew that I had probably left a part of myself there. Dickinson college set the expectations and mood for the West Virginia University. Once I arrived at at Morgantown West Virginia campus, I realized that the impossible had happened. I was breath taken by the sheer size of the WVU campus. Every street and corner was another addition to the university or worked in partnership with it. As a biomed student at Technology high school, I took a tour of the medical school and was shocked at the state of the art equipment used by med students at the university. Everything about West Virginia peaked my interest and invited my curiosity. Although some may argue that the size of West Virginia University might be intimidating, I would say that there is still a hometown feel that exerts from the campus. Whether it was the personal transit system or the interactive touch tables, the campus was full of quirks that never ceased to excite me. In retrospect, I am glad and thankful to Mr. Truhan and all the people involved in planning and executing this trip, because it left a profound mark on me. Thanks to this trip I was introduced to information that may not have been available otherwise and saw both institutions in a more positive light than I did initially.” – Vilma Rodriguez