OCC or Bust

As always, at this time of year, people are asking seniors the question, "Where are you going to college?" Well, 42 students in Jamesville-Dewitt High School's senior class are answering, "OCC," or Onondaga Community College.

But what are the reasons behind the abundance of future OCC students in the halls of J-DHS?

Dylan Lobdell is going to OCC because it's cheaper than a four-year college, and "I need to be close to my family for the time being." While studying photography at OCC, Lobdell will be living at home to save even more money.

Terrace Wynn is going to OCC for much of the same reasons as Lobdell. "OCC is a great start; it's cheap, and you can get all of your classes there and it's close to home," says Wynn. Wynn is planning to live on campus while taking Biology for Humanities in order to study nursing after OCC.

Some of the most common reasons seniors cite for choosing OCC is that it's more affordable than expensive private schools, it's not far from home and gives students a good educational basis.

Tyler Blom says he decided to go to OCC because, "It is an opportunity to obtain a very good education, but at a much more convenient price." Blom will be majoring in accounting while living on campus. Zach Stefl is going for the cheap price as well, and is saving even more money by living at home.

There are some other unique reasons behind the decision to go to OCC. Morgan Freeman is going to OCC "for the opportunities and to lax it up," while living in her own apartment off campus. Freeman says it "should be fun to live on my own!" Nino Bertone is going to OCC for soccer, while studying education. Nick Griffith is going to OCC, saying, "I thought it would be a better opportunity for sports."

Bri Piscitell says she is only going to OCC for a semester, because of the conditions on her Le Moyne College acceptance. Those conditions were for Piscitell to take three classes at OCC: English, Statistics, and Psychology, the major that Piscitell wants to study. Piscitell says, "I could take the classes over the summer, but I need to work over the summer for money. So I agreed to go to OCC for a semester and take those classes and then transfer to Le Moyne." Like Lobdell and Stefl, Piscitell is also going to live at home while attending OCC.

Another anomaly with this year's graduating class's college choices is that six students are attending Monroe Community College in Rochester. While some of the reasons behind this choice are the same (cost, good education), there are some added incentives. As Jake Merola says, "It's away from home, in a bigger city and there are malls close by." Paige Volz agrees saying, "I wanted to go to MCC because it was cheap, had my major (hospitality and travel), good size, and it was also not too far, not too close." For these seniors, MCC is like having all of the perks of OCC, without being so close to home.

Many students in this year's senior class are staying relatively close to home. Only 37 students are going to out-of-state colleges, some of which are pretty far away. Corrine Seay is going to Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma to be closer to her dad, who lives in Dallas. Seniors Priya Gupta and Jessica Cohen are going all the way out to California to attend the University of Southern California and the University of California, Los Angeles, respectively. Almost the same amount (31 students) are attending SUNY schools in state.

Wherever this year's J-DHS senior class ends up, it's sure to be a memorable experience. Good luck, seniors!