by Hannelore Sudermann
illustrations by David Wheeler
Julia Pasztor has had her pick of schools.
The Everett teen, born in a refugee camp to Hungarian parents,
graduated third in her class at Mariner High School with a GPA of
3.91. She speaks German. She was a class officer. And she is an
accomplished equestrienne—-English style.
An admissions counselor with Washington State University noticed
the brown-haired Julia her sophomore year, when she stopped at his
table during a college fair. “Her interests were right in line with
WSU,” says Kris Baier ’98. And she was enthusiastic about finding
the right college.
Julia attended her first college fair as a freshman. The
recruiters just looked at her and asked, “Are you lost?”
By the time she was a sophomore, they regarded her more
seriously. And in her junior year, it became a series of
courtships. She caught the eye of Randolph-Macon College, a private
school in Virginia. The school wooed her and even flew her across
the country to visit. Other schools sent her applications, regular
e-mails, and occasional phone calls.
Julia is a Washington Achievers Scholar. The honor means that on
top of her other scholarships, she gets money from the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation in a program developed to help children
from low-income families pay for college.
She’s got her future all figured out. She wants an affordable
college experience away—-but not too far—-from home. She’d like to
study animal science and eventually become a large-animal
veterinarian.
Kris Baier saw her as a good candidate for WSU. He explained
what she would get in Pullman and answered her questions about
essays and references. After Julia considered dozens of schools,
she made WSU her first choice.
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