Do you feel Vanguard prepared you for college?

I felt totally prepared when I got to college. At Vanguard I learned how to manage my time so that I can easily balance my academic work, social life and campus activities. Vanguard gave me a sense of independence that made my transition into college easy.

I loved that Vanguard is a small school, my teachers were able to get to know me. I never hesitated to talk to my teachers about projects, homework assignments or even college recommendations. I felt confident asking my teachers at Vanguard to write college recommendations for me because they really knew me – I wasn’t just a number.

From your conversations with other college students, what do you think makes Vanguard different from other high schools?

My friends in college are always shocked when I tell them that I knew everyone at my school in Waco. I have to tell them that this was something that made my high school experience really special! Your class is like your family, you get to know everyone so well. I still keep in touch with most of my Vanguard classmates.

Vanguard has a reputation for being rigorous. But do the students have fun, too?

Although Vanguard students work hard, there is plenty of freedom to have fun. Every year we have Field Day, tons of theme dances, pep rallies, group volunteer trips and a winter formal. Every student looks forward to spending time in the Senior Lounge – a fun, relaxing space where we play video games, watch movies, do homework and just hang out together! Vanguard students have the freedom to enjoy school but also know when it’s time to get serious about studying.

Carolyn Raymond,

Vanguard Class of 2007, graduate of  Denison University in Granville, OH

“Students might not realize Vanguard is preparing them so well for college.

They might wonder why they have to so much work, but when I went to college I was thankful for the great teachers and great experience that Vanguard had to offer.”

“I feel that I was very well prepared for college.

It is interesting to sit in class and see how other people think something is hard when I didn’t think it was because I had done it in high school.”

“When I was in math classes at Vanguard, I was always a person who needed help.

But in college math, I am helping other people, and it is the same with other subjects. It threw me for a loop because I had never had that happen to me!”

Bricker Bruner,

Vanguard Class of 2009, Currently attending Baylor University and is majoring in Journalism Public Relations with a minor in Entrepreneurship and Marketing.