History and German

Since I’m the sixth of my family’s 11 children to attend Hillsdale College, this lovely little place I now call home holds a special place in my heart. I had been visiting this beautiful campus since I was one year old when Hillsdale College first captured the attention of my oldest brother, Ben, in 1992. One would think that as a senior in high school pursuing a college education, I would have raced toward Hillsdale College because it had been such an intimate part of my life. I had seen one after another of my brothers and sisters attend Hillsdale College, and all spoke generously about the unique experiences they had undergone. This, however, did not persuade me to apply to Hillsdale. I desired to make my own name in an unfamiliar place and not just be another “Ashmore.” But thank the Lord for parents; they encouraged me to apply and so I did. After searching and trying so hard not to attend Hillsdale College, the Lord revealed what He intended for me: Hillsdale College for the next four years. It was the most difficult decision I had to make but clearly the Lord wanted what was best for me. I have been blessed with such an amazing experience at Hillsdale with wonderful friends, professors, and opportunities. I am actively involved on campus as a Resident Assistant in Olds Dorm, a representative in Student Federation, co-leader for a Bible study, Student Ambassador, and a participant in intramural sports. I cannot imagine myself at any other college, and I’m joyfully carrying on the tradition, the Ashmore family tradition, of attending Hillsdale College.

As I began to visit colleges, Hillsdale College and Hope College became my two top choices. I went and visited each college multiple times trying to narrow down my choice. As senior year came to an end, I went to visit each college one last time. It was not until this final visit that I had a clear idea of where the Lord wanted me. I met with Mr. Lantis, Director of Admissions at Hillsdale, and it was evident that Hillsdale wanted me. He made it clear that if I had decided not to attend Hillsdale College, it would have been their loss. I saw how invested Hillsdale College had been in my life and how strong their desire was for me to attend their college. For this investment and the intimate campus community and rigorous academics, I chose Hillsdale College.

The relationships that you form when you attend Hillsdale College are precious to me. Whether those relationships are with fellow students, professors, the administration, Saga Steve, custodians, or the community, all are blessings in and of themselves. I am never short of encouragement or a helping hand though I am far from home. When I leave Hillsdale College, I am confident these friendships will have a lasting impact on my life.

I will pursue God's calling in missionary work after I graduate. I have some possible opportunities in Africa and would like to work with children. Wherever I go, I pray that I may spread the love of Christ to those who are wounded spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically.

My experiences range from eating lunch with Dr. Arnn in Saga on multiple occasions to rushing the field at the end of last year's Homecoming game when we beat the undefeated Grand Valley State University football team. Lunches with Dr. Arnn, however, stand out among the rest. It is not uncommon to see the president of Hillsdale College sit down at a random table in Saga and pose questions like, "What are politics? What is government?" or "Why do we study something?" and my personal favorite, "What is truth?"

My favorite professor story consists of a semester-long adventure with Dr. Jackson. When I walked into his class the first day of freshman year, I said to myself, “Oh boy, what did I get myself into?” His long dark beard intimidated me, along with the large list of difficult books we were going to be reading. Every day, however, I was amazed at the expanse of his knowledge and wisdom. Although his class was difficult, I was challenged in ways that made me grow as an individual. I hope I am privileged to take another one of Dr. Jackson's classes before I graduate.

Hillsdale College's core curriculum impacted me specifically in two ways. First, the core taught me how to delve more deeply into a text and not be satisfied with a surface reading. My English and history classes freshman year challenged me to ask questions about how a text was written, the historical context of the text, for what purpose it was written, etc. Oftentimes, Dr. Jackson or Dr. Somerville would pose difficult questions and would not end class until we had grasped the concepts. Because the core taught me how to read a text, it encouraged me to seek the truth. Hillsdale's core curriculum encourages students to pursue what makes something true, and how we attain it. These two impressions affect how I think and for what purpose I think.

eashmore@hillsdale.edu