Haley Brown Finds Calmness
at Alfred State
Haley Brown has wasted no time diving into life at Alfred State College where the Huntington High School Class of 2012 member is in her freshman year studying nursing and playing in the intercollegiate athletic program.
"Everything is going great at Alfred," Ms. Brown said late last week. "I'm playing volleyball in college so that is taking up the majority of my time. Alfred is currently No. 5 or No. 6 in the nation. I start every game."
A fine student at Huntington High School, the teenager has nevertheless needed to make adjustments during her opening weeks of college. "School work here is very different," Ms. Brown said. "You need to be on top of things every day. There is no such thing as missing a day."
Located in Allegany County in New York's Southern Tier, Alfred State was founded in 1908. It offers 52 associate level programs in agriculture, business, health, applied and engineering technologies and in the liberal arts and sciences and 20 baccalaureate degree programs. The college sponsors 18 intercollegiate sports teams and more than 90 extracurricular clubs and organizations. Total campus enrollment is about 3,600. The school has 48,000 alumni.
"Alfred itself is what I hoped it would be," Ms. Brown said. "Although Alfred is a small place, there is a lot to do. My favorite thing is the views and getting away from the fast pace of home. I feel a sense of calmness and like I finally know what I want."
Alfred is small-town America. There is only one traffic light in the village. Alfred State's facilities include an 800-acre working farm. The college is located 15 miles from the Pennsylvania border, 70 miles south of Rochester and 90 miles southeast from Buffalo.
During her years at Huntington High School, Ms. Brown was one of the most spirited members in her class. She embraced activities like homecoming and the fall pep rally and starred on the volleyball team, winning post-season honors. She "loved" playing softball for coach Todd Jamison, who became one of her mentors.
Ms. Brown credits Huntington college counselor Bernadette Walsh for helping steer her to Alfred State.