Jeron Baker

My background:

I grew up in Palmyra, Missouri, and graduated from Palmyra High School.

Why I chose Hesston:

I was lost without a place to go after attending a college for a semester and being lied to by the "tennis coach." I ran into Luke Hartman, former basketball coach and professor, at a random conference and he was the guest speaker. I was coaching 5th and 6th grade basketball at the time and hadn't won a game. Luke invited me to come check out Hesston and play in his recruit weekend. Without anywhere to go I loaded up my car and headed to Kansas. I never looked back.

My favorite Hesston College memory:

One of our first weekends on campus our entire mod packed into my Ford Escort and one other small car. We were headed to Newell's and there was a lot of construction on I-135. My roommate convinced me to try swerving in between the traffic cones in the middle of the road. I did but hit something really hard and blew out my tire. We had to pack 10 people into a very small hatchback to be able to get back to campus that night. Two days later we borrowed a truck to tow the car back to campus.

After Hesston:

I went to Goshen College in Goshen, Ind. Tennis was the primary reason for heading to Goshen. I received a Bachelor's of Social Work degree from the Accredited Social Work Program there.

How Hesston is the same as when I attended:

The people who work here still care mostly about the students who come here. The desire is for relationships and community to happen. Each year I think people will get tired of re-establishing community but they never do. I'm continually amazed at how well relationships and community develop so quickly every year.

How Hesston is better than when I attended:

There has been a ton of construction since I was here. The snack shop is new, the library is new, Friesen Fine Arts Center was not here, Erb hall is being renovated...We also have a women's soccer team and cross country team that didn't exist when I was a student.

More about me:

I like to make up free verse rhymes in my head and rap them to various people through voicemail. It doesn't happen often but about once every two or three months I feel inspired and can't stop rhyming. It's bizarre.

Also if I could do anything in the world, I would open up a bakery and bake cookies and bread and cupcakes until the world was a better place.

My advice to prospective students about the admission process and how to choose a college:

Choose Hesston, that's all that you need to know!