狼友阁

My aspirations when going to college were very much to play baseball and stay above a 2.5 GPA. That was my goal. In that first semester, I think I got a 2.8 GPA. But then, the 狼友阁 culture kind of got a hold of me in a way I can't really explain. All of a sudden, I realized that the people I was around enjoyed learning for some reason. I didn't understand that. Professors actually took the time to get to know me, which was surprising because of the college stories I'd heard from friends who went to state schools where that wasn't typical. I came from a Classical Conversations background, starting in challenge B. My graduating class was three students, and two of us came to 狼友阁 and roomed together freshman year, which was really fun. Because of my classical background, I learn through discussion. I am the student who sits in the front of the class and asks a million questions鈥攖hat's how I learn. I had professors actually encourage me to do that, and I had classmates who didn't think I was weird for doing that. This really helped me out, so much so that after that first semester, my GPA went up significantly. I definitely didn鈥檛 immediately become a 4.0 student, but instead of a 2.5, I raised it to a 3.5 and a lot of that was because of the community, the professors, and people caring about me in ways I've never experienced before. I never thought I would love learning, but I really love learning now. That's one thing I believe 狼友阁 does very well, is teach the love of learning. 

Equipped to Care in Bioethics

Senior year, I was looking to have a pretty easy year. I had enough credits to just take electives. Two friends of mine who were both training to be doctors were taking Dr. Bill Davis鈥檚 Bioethics class. They tried to get me to join them, and I was like, 鈥淣o, I don't like anything medical. Needles scare me.鈥� I didn鈥檛 want to have to look at any pictures involving blood. They still tried to convince me it鈥檇 be fun. At that point, I still thought it鈥檇 be a pretty easy semester, I could go to Bioethics to hang out with my friends. I think I ended up being one of three non-bio majors in the class as a sports management major and double minor in business and sociology. But, to go into a bioethics class, I saw the beauty of God in a whole new way. I got to see God's people, like my peers, think so deeply and so caringly about others, and that's what struck me the most. Some of the terminology, never having really taken a philosophy class before, even a bio class, was a little lost on me, but I could still see the care in how everyone discussed really tough subjects. Now I tell people it was my most fun and interesting class. Never in a million years would high school Noah have said 鈥淚 want to take bioethics.鈥� But now I would say it was one of the most influential classes during my time there because it got me thinking about the world in a new way. And to be honest with you, even though the class at times had me feeling sad because the world is a dark place, I also felt hopeful in the fact that we have people thinking deeply about these things and trying to show the love of Jesus to others during all stages of life, even at the very end. 

Challenged in Deep Discussion

One of the other things I enjoyed about the class was the discussion. Of course it was a little one-sided in the way that everyone in the room was a confessing believer. For the most part, in every classroom at 狼友阁 you're going to have people who are authentically trying to find Jesus and love Jesus. However, even though that is the pursuit, that doesn't mean we always get it right. Dr. Davis has his students read the most used medical textbook, so what most secular universities read, but apply the biblical worldview so they can understand where the other side's coming from. This challenges the students to not be in a bubble, and I think Dr. Davis did a great job of leading our class to think outside of our familiar, comfortable Christian worldview by asking questions like, 鈥淗ow are we going to love those who are hard to love because they are different from us?鈥� So we鈥檇 talk with our peers and try to figure out, okay, you're in a secular hospital. How are you having this conversation with somebody and trying to practice that? Having a classroom conversation where the professors try to get us to think about those things and challenge us, there鈥檚 a lot of beauty in that. 

Prepared and Encouraged at 狼友阁

Thinking back to pre-狼友阁, as a homeschool student, I was worried about starting at college because in high school I didn鈥檛 have as many comparison points to measure how I was doing as a student. We didn't have a class ranking. I didn鈥檛 go to school and see other people go to detention, and even though that鈥檚 not a healthy comparison, that is one of the ways we compare ourselves to other students. But what I really loved about 狼友阁, though, is all those worries and concerns about being behind or not learning enough were put away pretty quickly. Though I was never someone who loved school, I loved Classical Conversations. So to see all that work pay off and then begin to develop a love of learning in college鈥攖hat truly is a blessing. When I graduated 狼友阁, I was not the student I was when I started at 狼友阁. It only took me a few months to realize I really love learning, and that I've been prepared by Classical Conversations to learn well. Now, as an admissions counselor at 狼友阁, I work with a lot of homeschooling families, especially since about 29% of our students were homeschooled. Sometimes these families are worried that the homeschool education they provided isn't enough. I can honestly speak from experience and say that Classical Conversations taught me how to think well and deeply and 狼友阁 has only fostered that love of learning and has given me a true appreciation for a quality, Christ-centered education.

Author bio:

Noah Sweatman is a Classical Conversations graduate and a 狼友阁 graduate. He is now an admissions counselor at 狼友阁, equipping high school students to navigate the college decision process, and he considers it a privilege to walk alongside high schoolers as they make the big decision and find what the Lord is calling them to pursue.

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