Every student comes to the same crossroad in their life, in which it is time to graduate from high school, and they are forced to decide what to do with the next several years ahead of them. For West Virginia Wesleyan freshman Rachel Waybright, the choice was not an easy one.

"My goal in life has always been to focus on academics and become a lawyer in West Virginia," Waybright stated.

She possessed very astute credentials upon graduation from high school, making her an excellent presence on any college campus. She graduated as the 2002 valedictorian at Parkersburg South High School, and was selected as a member of the National Honor Society, forensics and debate team, Interact, teenage Republicans, and a member of the Tri-City Baptist Church Choir. She was also selected as the Wood County federation of teacher's scholar, and won the DAR Good Citizen competition.

Waybright, who is from Parkersburg, W.Va., made the decision to attend college in her home state of West Virginia, upon a recommendation from a representative on the West Virginia Board of Law. With the goal of becoming a lawyer someday, the only dilemma left for her was choosing which school to attend.

"I applied to and visited several colleges around the state. I quickly found out that I did not want to attend any of the larger schools, because I immediately felt as if I were only a number," Waybright commented. "Upon visiting a few smaller schools, right away I knew that I wanted to attend a smaller school with a strong academic reputation," she added.

Waybright visited Wesleyan's campus for her first time during the summer before her senior year, when no students were present.

"At first, Wesleyan wasn't even an option for me, due to the high cost of tuition. But once I visited the campus and visited with the financial aid advisors, we worked out a conceivable figure. Upon visiting, the campus was extremely quiet. Everything about it was beautiful, but it didn't seem to have the energy that I was looking for in a college," she said.

"I came back during the school year, however, when students were attending classes. The entire campus atmosphere was different than when I visited over the summer. After meeting with several faculty members, I quickly realized that Wesleyan was not the average college, and that this was the only school I wanted to attend," comments Waybright.

She currently attends Wesleyan through several scholarships, including the Promise, presidential, Mason Crickard, and performing arts, in which she plays piano. She is currently majoring in english education and political science, aspiring to be accepted into law school upon graduation. After several weeks of college, she feels good about her decision to attend Wesleyan.

She commented, "I can't see myself at any other school but this one. The faculty not only care about me, but my success in and out of the classroom as well. I have no regrets about choosing Wesleyan for the start of my higher education."

Waybright is the daughter of Gregory and Pamela Waybright of Parkersburg. She has two siblings, Timothy and Sarah-Jane. Her paternal grandparents are Conard and Carolyn Waybright of Ripley, and her maternal grandparents are Chester and Fanny Hascue of Sandyville.