When I was first accepted to Manchester, I saw it as an opportunity; to study everything that I wanted, at the distance from home that I wanted, the year that I wanted. To me, Manchester was all the opportunity that I was prepared for.

I’m learning that Manchester is a hub of opportunities though, not just to advance your education in the classroom, but in providing gateways for growth as a person. It’s like a train station, a one stop shop to get almost wherever you’d like to go (even if you don’t yet know that you want to!)

Since I arrived at Manchester this fall, I’ve already been given the opportunity to travel a handful of times, short and far distances. The reasons and locations are all different: Two conferences in Washington D.C. to discuss Palestinian rights, a moral revival in Indianapolis, and crisscrossing the eastern portion of the country learning about different intentional communities.

Some of the opportunities I took, and some I didn’t. I’m a small town homebody just starting to get a taste of travel, and so it’s been up to me to determine what I can handle and what I can’t. You can travel at every opportunity, or never leave campus. As for me, I’m trying to find a healthy middle.

Most importantly has been the Women’s March on Washington. I, as a Manchester student, was able to be a part of history for less than $100 dollars. Through the planning of some very talented women and with the help of Manchester’s Peace Institute, students and residents from the surrounding areas took two overnight buses to the D.C. Women’s March.

What was supposed to be a huge gathering of 250,000 people ended up breaching over half a million. There were so many protesters the parade route was shut down, and the organizers flooded the streets of D.C. There were more people present at the protest than at President Trump’s Inauguration, and that’s just in D.C. It was a day in history that people marched around the globe in solidarity with the Washington protest, and I was able to be a part of it because I go to Manchester.

You can take all the trains Manchester has to offer, or just a few, or none. You can travel across the world, for a year or a semester, cross the country for a weekend or three, or just stay out. Manchester has plenty going on just on campus that you may not feel the urge to leave.

What I want you to know is that Manchester provides these opportunities few others do, for a price few others do, and I can say that personally, I’m getting an education, in the classroom and in life, that I wouldn’t be getting anywhere else.