As December approaches, lots of college application deadlines are coming up, and for many Belvidere North Seniors, this is top of their minds. The question for the class of 2022 is, do I stay or do I go? Battling whether you should stay in town after graduation, or try and travel can be difficult and stressful for some. Many students have decided to stay local, while many have decided to leave their hometown. There are many positives to both options. Staying local means you stay close to family, save money, and give yourself more time to figure your future plans out. Leaving means you get to experience a whole new environment and start fresh on your next chapter of life with new people.

Belvidere North has many college visits coming up for those who want to stay semi-local. On October 12th, Mount Mercy University, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, and Viterbo University will be stopping by and presenting at North. On October 15th, University of Illinois Springfield and Lake Forest College will be visiting. On October 18th, Bradley University will be visiting. 

Kaitlin Leider is a Belvidere North Senior volleyball player who committed to play D1 volleyball at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois when she was just a freshman. Bradley is about 2 and a half hours from Belvidere North. When asked about her college decisions she said, “I chose Bradley University because it gave me the opportunity to continue my athletic and academic career. Bradley is a private University that is a perfect match for what I vision my future to be and it’s not too far from home. My family will be able to come and support me at my volleyball games which is important to me.”

An article called “Should You Stay Home or Go Away to College?” written by vistacollege.edu says that “While school size, academic reputation, social scene and cost of tuition, room, and board are all important factors in making the college decision, studies show that proximity to home is also one of the top ten reasons students select their school of choice.”