There is no “right” choice, but there are darn good ones
Dr. Hugh Meagher is committed to assisting each of our students in selecting the college that is best for him or her. Matching the individual personality of a senior with the collective culture of a college is essential to laying the groundwork for a happy and productive higher education experience, and Dr. Meagher ensures that every senior has the tools needed to choose the next step wisely.
A good example of Dr. Meagher’s work was seen this past spring with senior Rheannon Loth. Working with Meagher, Rheannon earned the prestigious Johnson Scholarship at Washington and Lee University. Her final decision to attend Washington & Lee was assisted with the help of alumna and Johnson Scholar Alina Pankova.
In Rheannon’s own words:
A great number of people helped me decide to commit to W&L, but Dr. Meagher and Alina are the only two I would call crucial. Alina gave me some honest, wonderful insight about the culture at W&L, and her experiences and advice reassured me that W&L really is “small but mighty.” Recalling going to free events constantly and changing her major multiple times, Alina made it clear that the school’s support does not end with the scholarship; it really is a place where I can do anything my heart desires so long as I speak up about it. To me, Alina also embodies the kindness and absolute willingness to help someone else out that I think W&L’s culture tries to instill in its students. I am so fortunate our paths crossed—such a wonderful convergence of networks! Of course, our paths only crossed thanks to the inimitable Dr. Meagher. His knowledge of universities is, of course, unparalleled, but he also gives truly excellent advice. As I endured the throes of decision-making, a few of his words kept coming back to my mind: “There is no ‘right’ choice.” It took a long time for those words to sink in for me, but when they were fully absorbed, it was like seeing the sun rise for the first time. (Exaggeration? Yes. Still true? Absolutely.) I was ultimately choosing between two colleges that I truly loved, and I was stressing over the smallest of minutiae—Where do their dining halls source their food? Are there laundry facilities in each dorm? How many 500 level classes do they have in Arabic? (I do not plan to study Arabic). I think “spiraling” would be the most apt description of my thought process. But at last, Dr. Meagher’s words pushed through the storm: “There is no ‘right’ choice.” His hard-won and eagerly shared wisdom allowed me to finally relax and listen to my gut; I had to acknowledge that the universe would not punish me for choosing this school or that, and I could make the choice that I knew I needed to make. Is W&L the ‘right’ choice? Maybe not. But I think it’s a darn good one.
