From Haiti to Hillsdale

Kathryn, a current Hillsdale College freshman who spent the past year working at an orphanage in Haiti and preparing for missionary work in France, is a very unique member of the class of 2017. Although she was hesitant about coming to college, Kathryn knew Hillsdale was the right place for her to develop the skills necessary to follow her dreams of helping impoverished children in other nations.

Kathryn’s background made her uncomfortable with the idea of settling down. She found it difficult to justify spending so much time studying the good, the true, and the beautiful while there are so many prevalent needs in the world.

“There was no way I was going to devote four years of time and thousands of dollars to learn about Aristotle,” said Kathryn. “All I wanted to do was spend the rest of my life helping those kids.”

After deferring her admission at Hillsdale in 2012, Kathryn came back from France dreading the thought of going to school in 2013. To comfort herself, Kathryn tapped into the excitement she felt when she visited Hillsdale’s campus in high school.

“What really impressed me when I came was the fact that students genuinely want to be here, and they could articulate why they want to be here. They had such a presence of mind and were always thoughtful with their answers to my questions.”

Since being here, Kathryn has found that Hillsdale is not what she had thought it would be. “I’ve met so many people here who have a heart for the world and who do put the ideas of truth and beauty and goodness into action,” said Kathryn. “There is genuine love on this campus.”

As for the reservations she had about studying as opposed to doing missionary work abroad, Kathryn says: “What I’m learning in the classroom is equipping me to serve in greater ways.”

Kathryn hopes to pursue either French, early childhood education, classics, religion, history, or English. She hopes to help the community of Hillsdale through her philanthropic efforts with Young Life, Salvation Army Kids Club, Free Methodist kids club, and the GOAL program.