Two Freshmen Share Their Stories
Freshman Anna Sasaki's roommate shouldn't try winning any arguments if a dispute arises. It could be a losing proposition.
Sasaki has aspirations of being a lawyer and is taking a class her first semester at Cal State Long Beach that simulates court arguments and requires students to argue cases in front of their peers and professors.
“I like to talk and argue,” she said, adding that her roommate seems cool.
Sasaki said a harmonious roommate is not her biggest concern as she leaves behind her friends at Saddleback Christian Academy and moves forward at CSULB.
“I think my biggest concern is just living away from home,” Anna said. “So it's going to be a new experience living with someone else and living on a floor with different people. There's going to be a lot of logistics to figure out once I get there and things I can't plan ahead for.”
Reed Ellison, an incoming freshman from Los Alamitos High, said he expects the first few days will be a period of adjustment, from sleeping in his own room to sharing a dorm room, from working part time to studying full time.
“Everything’s changing,” said Ellison, a computer engineering major. “It’s going to be new, completely different from high school. … Hopefully, I can handle that.”
Both Sasaki and Ellison are tackling challenging full class loads the first semester, schedules that include subjects such as economics, calculus and honors engineering. Both freshmen are CSULB President’s Scholars, a merit-based program that honors talented, high-achieving students from California.
“I’m quitting my job at least for the first semester to make sure I get used to the level of work and not to flunk,” Ellison said.
