Photo Illustration by Julie Thephachan

With only a few weeks left in the semester, seniors have already begun to say goodbye to their school and prepare for the next chapter in their lives while reflecting on their time in college.

Kyle Farmer, senior secondary education and social sciences major, said that his college life has been full of ups and downs.

“I’ve learned how to be an adult (and) I’ve learned more about being responsible,” Farmer said. “I’ve joined an excellent fraternity, Sigma Phi Epsilon, and they’ve helped me become more responsible, work hard, get out there more and care more about things outside myself.”

Farmer said that he’d miss late night talks with friends the most, but wouldn’t miss finals. After graduation, Farmer said he’s planning on finding a job teaching high school history or world geography.

Many other seniors also have plans made for post graduation, like Daniel Delgadillo, senior crime and delinquency studies major. Delgadillo was recently hired by the Emporia Police Department and has already begun his training. Delgadillo said that graduating from college is very different from graduating from high school.

“In high school everybody expects you to get basic knowledge,” he said. “I really think it’s a greater appreciation (graduating from college) just because not everybody goes to college, and even then, all those don’t graduate either.”

When asked if he had any advice for underclassmen, Delgadillo said that time management is a crucial skill for students to master.

Casey McCabe, senior theater major, is currently working on “The Eleven O’ Clock Club,” the Spring Dance Show.

“Every year you watch friends leave, and when it’s finally your turn to leave, it’s kind of that realization that you have to be an adult, you have to try and find a job and you have to apply the things that you’ve spent four years learning,” McCabe said. “It’s exciting and kind of scary.”

He also said that he’s mainly learned all of the aspects of theater beyond acting, including set design, lighting and more.

Abbi Moser, senior secondary education major, is planning on sticking around in Emporia, as she has been offered a job at the Turning Point learning center, teaching high school level students. Moser said that she will miss the activities offered by the university.

When asked what advice she had for underclassmen, Moser said that she’s had the same advice ever since she was an Residential Assistant.

“Definitely don’t go home every weekend because you’re missing out on a lot of the fun activities and being an individual and being independent,” Moser said.

Luke Lehman, senior English major, advises students to not procrastinate.

“If you’re busy, make sure you write everything out…I think the biggest thing in college is to plan ahead,” Lehman said.

According the a tentative list from Registrar, there are more than 600 graduating seniors in May. Some will leave Emporia and some will stay and begin their post college lives, but each one of them is going to be alike in one way – they will be Emporia State University alumni.

Luke Bohannon