Episode 005: Crossroads

Hey, everyone. You're listening to the Curious Lens podcast. My name's Matthew Cicanese, and today, I'm talking to you about my first major crossroads in life.

Would I become a scientist or a storyteller?

It was the end of high school in 2009 when I had to make a really big decision: where would I go next, and what was I going to learn next?

I loved both science and the arts, but this decision would shape my whole college degree. I had well-saturated interests across the vast study of topics and creative skills. In science, I was excited about things like chemistry, environmental studies, biology, and entomology. In humanities, I was interested in things like the United Nations. I was even in a special topics class called Model United Nations.

At the end of the semester, we actually got to visit New York City and see the UN headquarters, among a lot of other things. But that's a story for another time. I was really into photography, shooting baseball games locally for my first job and building up my first portfolio in an advanced photography class, learning who I was through the lens at the very beginning, and growing into my creative style.

I applied to a couple different colleges, but I knew the one I needed to pick the moment I visited. I had never heard of Frank Lloyd Wright before, but visiting Florida Southern College campus for the first time it was spellbinding. The different styles of architecture, engaging atmospheres, kind professors, and small class settings told me this was where I needed to learn.

Why did these help me learn better? Well, it turns out I'm a kinesthetic learner, so I have to touch and try to learn best.

It's a good thing that a core part of Florida Southern is this idea of engaged learning, reaching beyond the book and out into the world through the lens of applied learning.

Compared to the other schools I visited, it felt alive, connected, creative, supportive, and inspiring. When I was offered some scholarships, I had the opportunity to visit campus again before finishing high school and spend a weekend with many people that I still call friends today.

A decade later, I attended some sessions about the different perspective degree tracks, and the one that bubbled up to the top was Environmental Studies. When they took us down to the edge of the lake, a small research area called the Southern Landing, and they showed us how engaged the learning process was, I had found my next path. With mud still on my shoes and a few mosquito bites, I already made up my mind. Funny enough, I hadn't even applied for the second school yet, and ultimately, I never needed to. I still did apply as a safety net.

But as soon as I got that acceptance letter from my dream school, it was an easy yes: the opportunity to expand my creativity and knowledge in the things I was taking pictures of out in the world through the lens of environmental science was a dream come true.

But dreams aren't always what they seem, and the road through that experience wasn't without its speedbumps.

In the next episode, we'll explore my love for science.

Until then, stay curious.