Corey Asay ’05 thought he had his mind set. After high school, he was going to join a handful of his friends and attend Indiana University. That was the plan.
At least, that was the plan until he took a chance and visited Wabash College.
“My mom really wanted me to go to Wabash. We had a family friend go there, who was a doctor, so she thought I should at least check it out,” said Asay, a first-generation college student from Evansville. “I had no interest in Wabash — hadn’t really ever heard of it before.”
Asay signed up for what is now known as Scarlet Honors Weekend, a program designed specifically for high school seniors considering the College as their destination.
For two days, prospective students are able to participate in classroom discussions, meet faculty, tour and stay in fraternities and residence halls, and experience first-hand what makes Wabash College special. Additionally, those who attend are guaranteed a $500 scholarship
per year for four years with potential to earn up to a full-tuition scholarship.
About a week before Asay was set to arrive on campus for Scarlet Honors, he changed his mind and said he didn’t want to go. But, he said, mom “was not having any of that.”
“She said, ‘Oh no, you’re going! You told them you’re going, so you better go,”’ Asay said. “We compromised and I told her, ‘Fine, I’ll go up, do the testing, stay Friday night, and that’s it. I’m leaving Saturday morning.’”
After spending his first day on campus and staying at the Delta Tau Delta fraternity house, Asay fell in love with the College. He said the small campus and classroom sizes, welcoming professors, and the connections he made with other prospective and current students at the fraternity made Wabash “feel like home.”
“When I toured IU, I just remember feeling like I had no other choice. The campus felt huge and like there was a disconnect because there were so many people there,” Asay said. “I felt completely different coming to Wabash. It’s so much smaller and more intimate. I didn’t feel like I was going to get lost in the crowd. The guys at the fraternity were so nice and we had a lot of fun – they made me feel like I had already committed to Wabash.”
Saturday morning rolled around and Asay made a call to his dad who was staying at a hotel nearby in Crawfordsville. He told his dad he changed his mind and wanted to stay the whole weekend.
When he returned home after experiencing the full Scarlet Honors Weekend, Asay remembers telling his mom, “All right, let’s send it the deposit. I’m doing to Wabash.”
“The rest is history,” Asay said with a chuckle.
While at Wabash, Asay majored in psychology, worked as an admissions tour guide, was a member of Delta Tau Delta, and reported for The Bachelor. After graduating cum laude, Asay went on to earn his J.D. from Ohio Northern University. Today, he lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, and is a labor and employment attorney with Morgan & Morgan, P.A.
Asay credits Scarlet Honors Weekend for his successes in life today. He encourages other prospective students to take advantage of the program and to “not miss out on a big opportunity.”
“Always be open to opportunities. I don’t think prospective students can really make an informed decision about where to go without stepping foot on campus, meeting people face-to-face, and getting a look at what it would be like to be a college student,” Asay said.
“I almost passed on that, and it would have totally changed my whole trajectory,” he said. “Scarlet Honors definitely made a big difference for me, and I have no doubt it will for others who were just like me.”
This year’s Scarlet Honors Weekend will take place on December 10-11. The deadline to register for this event is November 26, 2021. For more information and to register, visit apply.wabash.edu/portal/SHW_Info.
