The Advance

Issue date: 11/3/06 Section: Opinion

KWU was founded in 1886 by the United Methodist Church and is still a big part of the city of Salina today. It is located in the heart of Salina, which is a little over 50,000 people. There are about 900 students attending this university. Most of the students who attend are from out of state, meaning that people from all over the U.S. and other countries come to KWU.

Paul Bridenbaugh is from Phoenix, and a freshman at KWU. He is on the Coyotes Baseball team and is enrolled in 15 credit hours as a Sports Management major. When asked what were some of the reasons for coming to KWU, his response was, "I first was contacted by head Coach David Dawson, and he was interested in me for playing baseball. I then came out for a visit soon after that to see the campus and the facilities. I liked what I had seen on my visit; for example I liked how the campus is laid out where you have to walk outside from class to class. I also liked how the class sizes are smaller to help accommodate better teacher-to-student relationships. Overall I felt that this would be a good fit for me, both athletically and academically."

Ronny Romo, another native of Arizona, is also a freshman and attending KWU. Like Bridenbaugh, Romo plays baseball, but his schedule consists of 16 credit hours and is majoring is business. When asked why he is attending KWU, his response was, "I have always maintained a dialog with Coach David Dawson throughout my senior year of high school, and he finally made me an athletic scholarship offer. When this happened I then decided to take an official visit for baseball and I was very impressed. The field that we would be playing on is in very good condition, and I felt that I would be given a good chance to play baseball my first year in college. This is big for me because I would like to eventually go pro later down the road, and I need to get as much experience as I can."

Connor Driscoll is a freshman at KWU, and, like his two friends, he plays baseball for Dawson. Driscoll is from Russell, Ks, and he loves attending KWU. When asked why he likes it so much here at KWU, here was his response; "K­-Dub is a great place to be, because of the entire package you get with it. First, is the history behind the school. K-Dub has been around for along time and is very close to my home town of Russell.

Second, is that generally the people that attend KWU are good people who just love to participate in sports and other activities. And lastly, KWU is overall a great school to get an education. I mean the class sizes are really small which is great because you get to know the professors and you build a lot of relationships here. Overall I love the entire atmosphere that KWU has to offer."

All three of the students that were interviewed gave good reasons for being at this school. Bridenbaugh liked the school itself the surrounding area, the greenery, and the weather. Romo liked the chances of playing for an NAIA baseball team, and furthering his chances of playing baseball because of the atmosphere surrounding the school and all of the events that it has to offer. This is why they are at KWU.

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