Jan Haussmann
Freshman Profile: Jan Haussmann
The challenge of enrolling at Erskine College in the fall is no big
deal to Jan Haussman, a recent honor graduate of Mauldin High School.
Challenging situations are nothing new to Haussman. In August of
1999, she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and had to undergo surgery
and subsequent treatments.
The surgery was a success, and her prognosis is good, but Haussman
will have to take medication every day for the rest of her life to
keep any cancer cells from growing back.
Haussman said the cancer affected her in many positive ways, and
that she has become more "open-minded due to all of [her] experiences"
and has more of an optimistic outlook on life.
"I have come to realize life more, and that has furthered my desire
to become a doctor or scientist, and has increased my desire and ability
to help other people," she said.
Haussman said her biggest attraction to Erskine was its people, and
she is looking forward to officially joining the Erskine family in
a few weeks when she moves to Due West with the rest of the Class
of 2004.
Haussman first heard of Erskine through her guidance office at Mauldin.
She saw posters and other materials that helped her to decide to visit
the campus at the end of her junior year.
"My first impression of Erskine, upon driving onto the campus, was
that it was a small, very pretty campus with beautiful buildings and
nice people who actually wave at you," she said.
At the end of her first visit, her impression of Erskine remained
the same — she really liked the people. She found that students
"went out of their way to be friendly and answer questions."
During the time Haussman was considering attending Erskine, she was
also looking at Clemson, Wofford, Converse, Francis Marion, and Furman.
She eventually decided to attend Erskine because of the one-on-one
attention Erskine students receive, the new Daniel-Moultrie Science
Center, and all of the technology and facilities available.
She also said she likes the fact Erskine is a small, Christian college.
Once she arrives at Erskine, Haussman plans to be involved in academics
as well as campus activities. She plans to major in biology and take
the pre-medical track.
She is looking forward to studying with members of the science departments
and "working with the turtles with Dr. Edwards" (an ongoing
research project of Dr. Mary Lang Edwards, a professor of biology
at Erskine). She hopes that this hands-on experience will help her
to decide what she wants to do in the medical field.
Haussman also enjoys playing the clarinet, and is looking forward
to being involved in Sinfonia, Erskine’s orchestra. She said
the only thing she is not looking forward to is being away from her
friends and family, although she is excited about meeting and making
new friends at Erskine. She feels that this will be her biggest challenge
as she begins her freshman year of college.
Haussman currently lives with her parents and younger brother in
Mauldin. She also works in Mauldin at a day care center called Pocket
Full of Miracles where she is a teacher in their two-year-old class.
She has been working at the day care center all summer and plans to
continue working until she moves into Carnegie Hall, Erskine’s
freshman women’s dorm, in late August. Her summer plans also
include packing and getting ready for college.
