Belmont College, Alma Mater . . .

Twenty-five years ago this month, I moved to Nashville as a freshman at Belmont College. The college hymn back then began with the words, "Belmont College, Alma Mater, proudly we proclaim." Today as we walked around the campus with Daniel on his first official college university visit, I felt that Belmont pride welling up inside me. I had fun giving Daniel a running "backstage" commentary as we went on the tour (and he's probably very glad that I won't be able to do that at every school we visit during his college search process).

Yes, things have changed at the old alma mater and there are many new buildings that weren't there when I was a student (I think my old dorm is now a men's dorm). And the cost per year . . . let's not even talk about it! But what hasn't changed is the sense of community and the commitment to helping students reach for their dreams.

I listened to the presentation during the School of Music Q&A session and remembered hearing my friends talk about taking required piano lessons and music theory classes and singing with the Belmont Chorale. Back when I was a freshman and was meeting other new students, one of the common questions to ask was, "What's your major?" Nine times out of ten, the answer was "Music" or "Music Business." For a Communication Arts major like me, I was definitely in the minority and felt like I was surrounded by talented people who were planning to "make it big" in the music business.

I know that Daniel's experience (if he winds up attending Belmont) will be different and unique, and I don't want him to feel like he is "required" to go there just because his parents did. But now that I have a kid who is dreaming about making it in the music business, it's interesting to see it all from a new perspective. And I can't wait to see how it all turns out!