Below is blog entry from one of the individuals in the College Experience named, Andrew Maggio who graduated in the Class of 2014. Here are his inspirational words:
Aside from keeping my sanity up, I have been exercising, helping my parents with the chores, grocery shopping, and taking walks outside. Being that we are living with social distancing, as a person on the autism spectrum it’s been very hard to meet with people face-to-face but better safe than sorry. Luckily we are living in a generation where we can video chat, IM each other, and do video conferences with certain businesses.
I think overall, as anybody who is in any epidemic, there are three important steps to survive: stay well, be positive, and be charitable. Like any virus it will blow over eventually, but right now we have to keep our hearts and minds open and ready for any challenge.
Both of my jobs have shut down due to the virus, but due to my money-saving skills I was able to take out enough money to survive. Where I am currently living, I live right near a shopping center called, Woodbury Premium Outlets, which is currently closed due to Covid-19. Woodbury is not that far from West Point. Normally I am in Albany but for safety reasons I am in Woodbury with my family.
My advice to others is to not cave into anxiety, panic, and depression. Do not let yourself be malice in darkness. Rather let yourself be malice in light. And most importantly…have faith!
What comes after graduation? Many College Experience students, in fact most, choose to remain in Albany. They maintain friendships with their fellow and former graduates, form romantic partnerships, and some get married.