Donor Impact 2015
Theo Wisniewski
Theo Wisniewski
Graduation year: 2016
Major: Engineering Physics
Hometown: San Diego, Calif.
I grew up in San Diego, where I attended a Christian school for both middle school and high school. I invested most of my time in education, football, lacrosse, and Boy Scouts. I knew high school wasn’t going to last forever, and, during my junior year while I was looking at different colleges, I heard about Whitworth from a family friend, who happens to be [Whitworth President Emeritus] Bill Robinson. I didn’t know about Whitworth or who Bill was (or how famous in Whitworth’s history he is). But he encouraged me to visit the campus.
My family decided we would vacation at Lake Coeur d’Alene. As you can imagine, a suggestion to spend a day away from the lake to spend an entire day visiting the campus wasn’t a very popular one. We vacationed with another family, and there were four prospective students and four adults piled in the car to go on the tour. None of us had any idea of the experience we were in for.
I was blown away by the beauty of the campus and by all of the people we met. As part of our visit, we had a great personal conversation arranged with one of the professors. He conveyed to us the importance of thinking about the environment we were currently most successful in and picking a university with a similar environment to thrive in. This had a great impact on my own choice. Three of us from that visit attend Whitworth and the fourth is still in high school.
I am in my third year of the 3-2 engineering program with a minor in theology. The 3-2 engineering program includes me attending Whitworth for three years and enrolling in a partner school for two years; at the end of all five years of schooling, I will receive bachelor’s degrees from both schools. The advantage of the program is that I get the advantage of a liberal arts education at Whitworth while still getting an ABET-accredited engineering degree from the partner school.
Deciding to do this program has been one of my toughest decisions I have had to make since it means I can attend Whitworth for only three years. However, I think that I have taken full advantage of my time here. Whitworth has helped me grow as an individual and to become connected with a community on and off campus. Whitworth also gave me the opportunity to study abroad in a Jan Term class. I just returned from the 2015 Christianity in Britain trip.
Whitworth has blessed me with so many opportunities, and none of them would have been possible without the help of donors. The merit-based scholarships ensure that my hard work in the classroom is helping keep me in that classroom, where I need to be right now. The facilities that have been made possible through donors provide a great environment in class and for building community. All Whitworth students, including me, are very fortunate that amazing donors make it possible for us to have the true Whitworth experience.
Whitworth has become a second home for me that includes strong relationships not just with students but with professors as well. Everyone cares for me on a personal level, making the community a family. It is a home that is going to be just as hard for me to leave as my San Diego home – especially since Whitworth included my parents in my journey as well.
Thank you again for helping to make Whitworth a home. God bless.