![\"Jameel](\"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/photo-12-e1379627775638.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo courtesy of Jessica Murphy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Fieldston News<\/b>: First of all, welcome to Fieldston! What have you been doing in preparation for your first year here?<\/p>\n
Jameel Freeman<\/b>: This summer has been quite eventful! I officially transitioned from Princeton University to Fieldston on July 1. From there, my wife and I moved to our new apartment, I visited over 15 colleges and universities, and I read up on Fieldston and my future students. I ended my summer with our annual family vacation to Martha\u2019s Vineyard. My wife and I were married on the Vineyard so every trip is a special occasion for us. I\u2019m an avid fan of fitness and powerlifting so I spent any remaining spare time in the gym.<\/p>\n
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FN<\/b>:\u00a0 Where did you go to high school and what was your experience like? Was it similar to Fieldston?<\/p>\n
JF<\/b>:\u00a0 I went to high school in a small town in southeastern North Carolina. My high school was pretty much the opposite of Fieldston as a small, rural, public school. There was literally a farm with cows, corn, tobacco and cotton directly across the street. We could have walked across the street and had class on Colonial or Southern US History! It could have been NC\u2019s own humble version of City Semester! My high school experience was pretty normal for the most part. I was involved in athletics, band and musical theater, and various other school organizations. I was the student who was ready for college in ninth grade, eager to enter into a more diverse community. I also worked part-time at a seafood restaurant where I was quickly promoted from bussing tables to frying hushpuppies and french fries, to finally frying shrimp and fish. While I was quite proud of my newfound culinary strengths, my family did not appreciate the fact that they could smell me from the driveway when I came home from work.<\/p>\n
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FN<\/b>:\u00a0 When you were in high school, what did you think your profession would be?<\/p>\n
JF<\/b>:\u00a0 When I was in high school I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life \u2013 students who are undecided will probably hear me say \u201cthat is OK\u201d numerous times! From a surgeon to political analyst, like a Fast and Furious movie I had a new one every week. Ironically, my mentors from high school and college all predicted that I would end up in the field of education. I am very happy they were right.<\/p>\n
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FN<\/b>:\u00a0 Where else have you worked in college admissions?<\/p>\n
JF<\/b>:\u00a0 I have worked in graduate and undergraduate admissions for almost 14 years. I started my career in graduate admissions at UNC-Chapel Hill, my alma mater. I have worked in undergraduate admissions at Bentley University, Johns Hopkins University and most recently, Princeton University. I credit UNC and my mentors there for leading me into the field of higher education. It is one of the many reasons I am so proud to be an alumnus.<\/p>\n
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FN<\/b>:\u00a0 If you did not work in college admissions, what would your profession be?<\/p>\n
JF<\/b>:\u00a0 If I did not work in college counseling and admissions, I would most likely be a counselor or teacher for a community based organization focusing on first generation and\/or low-income students. Throughout my career, the issues of educational access and the widening achievement gap have always been important to me. On a side note, if the field of education did not work out, I would probably be a fashion editor or journalist, or own my own men\u2019s clothing boutique. I sincerely appreciate the world of fashion \u2013 now there\u2019s a fun fact for everyone!<\/p>\n
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FN<\/b>:\u00a0 What are you most looking forward to this year?<\/p>\n
JF<\/b>:\u00a0 I\u2019m looking forward to working with students again. In undergraduate admissions, the higher you go the further you become from the very people you entered the field to work with. I\u2019m excited to help students navigate not only college admissions but life in general.<\/p>\n
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FN<\/b>:\u00a0 What is your favorite part of Fieldston so far, although the year has not actually started?<\/p>\n
JF<\/b>:\u00a0 My favorite part of Fieldston so far has been the people. From students to faculty to parents, everyone is friendly, dedicated and helpful. It\u2019s easy to see the strong sense of community here, it felt like I was instantly inducted into the \u201cFieldston Family\u201d (my apologies if someone has trademarked that phrase!).<\/p>\n
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FN<\/strong>:\u00a0 Because you\u2019ve graduated high school and are a part of the college admissions department, do you have any words of advice for the seniors and juniors this year?<\/p>\n JF<\/strong>:\u00a0 My advice for seniors and juniors is to relax and try and enjoy the process. It is certainly stressful at times and there can be disappointment along the way. The journey is what matters; the journey is what defines you. As clich\u00e9 as it sounds, I think you will all learn more about yourselves than you ever thought you would, just by filling out an application.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n FN<\/b>:\u00a0 Do you have anything that you would like to say to the school?<\/p>\n JF<\/b>: I am appreciative of the opportunity to work with such a talented group of students, faculty and staff, and parents. Now let\u2019s make it a great year!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In August, the Fieldston News sat down with Jameel Freeman, the newest addition to the college department, and learned more about his background as well as his experience in the field. Fieldston News: First of all, welcome to Fieldston! What have you been doing in preparation for your first year here? Jameel Freeman: This summer has been quite eventful! I officially transitioned from Princeton University to Fieldston on July 1. From there, my wife<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":1881,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"coauthors":[67],"class_list":["post-1832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-slider"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Jameel-Cover.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1832"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1832\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1835,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1832\/revisions\/1835"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1832"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fieldstonnews.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=1832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}