Brad and Kathleen Rohrs

Dear Prospective St. Mary's College of Maryland Families,

Our son Michael graduated from St. Mary's College of Maryland in 2006 earning degrees in English and Political Science. He is currently employed as an intelligence analyst and lives in northern Virginia.

Michael's college selection process was an interesting one. In high school, he expressed a desire to go to college somewhere warm, on the water, where he could play soccer. The summer between junior and senior year we began our search and embarked on a college tour through North and South Carolina. After looking at schools as far away as College of Charleston he announced he wasn't interested in any of them, none "felt right". We came home.

One day in September I was standing on the sidelines watching Mike play soccer when I struck up a conversation with a gentleman who I had never met before. He introduced himself as Rich Edgar, the Director of Admissions from St. Mary's College of Maryland, as well as the assistant soccer coach of the college. He was there to watch some prospective soccer players. When I asked which ones, he replied Mike Rohrs and two others. I explained that Mike was my son but I had no idea he was interested in SMCM. Rich explained that he had given a presentation at the high school earlier that day. Afterwards, Mike had introduced himself to Rich and asked if he would come watch him play. Soon after, Mike came home and announced he made up his mind and would be attending St. Mary's College of Maryland. On his own, he filled out one application to one school.

St. Mary's College of Maryland was the right fit for Mike. It provided him with many opportunities socially, academically and athletically. He played soccer all four years, traveled to England with the team, spent a semester studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain, worked for admissions giving campus tours and traveled to high schools around the country giving presentations to prospective students. His studies were as diverse as his extra curricular activities. His professors helped him broaden his horizons politically, philosophically and academically. They pushed him to think outside the box and develop his writing skills. As a result, he had several works published and won a literary award. He developed close friendships with his peers and mentorships with his professors and coaches. His campus life included campfires on the point, inner tube water polo, sailing, and tennis golf (a game which he and his roommate made up, but is not yet sanctioned by public safety).

As parents we couldn't have been more pleased. Our son found the college that "felt right", in Maryland. Living in Annapolis, just ninety minutes away, Mike was able to "go away" to school and we were able to attend every soccer match. He could have come home on the weekends, but chose to stay at school to be with his friends and teammates. Being challenged academically and athletically helped him grow as a student and athlete with professors and coaches who had his best interest in mind. It was everything we could have asked for our son's college experience.

Mike's experiences at SMCM prepared him well to enter the real world. He is currently gainfully employed, lives independently, continues to play soccer, is pursuing his love of writing and aspires to be a speech writer.
 
This public honors college has a private college feel and was as good a fit for us as it was for our son. It is with pleasure that we highly recommend St. Mary's College of Maryland and we would be delighted to answer any questions you may have about the institution. Please feel free to email us with questions, concerns, or simply just to chat about SMCM at katrohrs@aol.com.

Sincerely,

Brad and Kathleen Rohrs

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