My name is Candice Ellison. I was born in Richland Memorial Hospital, lived in Winnsboro, SC until I was three when I moved to Lexington, SC. I have lived in Lexington ever since. Me, my brother, and my sister are very close. We get along most of the time. I have an older brother, James (almost 21), who is a senior at Clemson. He never smiles normaly for pictures which explains his goofy smile in the picture above. This semester he is studying abroad in Ghana, Africa. He is a biosystems engineering major. He played trumpet in high school and continues to play at church at Clemson. I have a younger sister, Audrey (16), who is a sophmore at Lexington High School. She plays saxaphone in the band and is interested in fashion. She hopes to one day own a clothing store with her best friend. I am a biology major at USC and hope to pursue a music minor. I'm still not sure what my plans are after college.

Science has always been my favorite subject. Last summer I had the opportunity to volunteer with the sea turtle patrol group on Edisto Island. At the beginning of the summer, during "laying season," I helped them find turtle tracks early in the mornng and mark the turtle nests. Later in the summer, during "hatching season," I helped take inventory of the hatched nests and every once in a while there would still be a hatchling in the nest. On two occations, I got to lead the baby hatchlings to the water and watch them get washed away into the ocean. This was a truly incredible experience.

I play piano and clarinet; however, I like piano better. I've been playing piano since second grade (11 years). Throughout high school I've participated in numerous piano festivals and auditions. Also, all throughout high school, I participated in the marching band. This had a very positive impact on my life because I learned some valuable life skills and met many friends. The picture below is me with two of my friends at a marching band competition. I've known the one on the left for thirteen years! I've gone on numerous trips with the band. With the marcing band, I went to Oahu, Hawaii and got to play patriotic tunes at Pearl Harbor in front of the USS Arizona Memorial. With the wind ensemble, I went to Orlando and got to play with Bob McGrath from Sesame Street at a music teacher's convention. This year (again with the wind ensemble) I went to Coke World in Atlanta, GA and to the Chatenooga Aquarium in Chatenooga, TN. One of my proudest accomplishments was making it into AllState band. Every year in high school, I have made it into Region Band and have gotten call backs for AllState. This year, I finally made it into AllState! Some of my hobbies/interests include music (listening and playing), kayaking, tennis (even though I'm not good), and biology.

Before I came to USC I wasn't sure what to expect. I had mixed feelings. I was excited for a new venue but also nervous of how I would adjust. I was scared I wouldn't like my roomate, that I would have no friends, that I wouldn't be able to handle all of my classes, and that I wouldn't be able to find my way around campus. I actually had a dream before move-in day where my roomate didn't speak english!

Luckily, none of my preconcieved notions have come true. So far, during these first few weeks at USC, I am enjoying college. I have met so many new people and have learned about many of the opportunities available to me on campus. I have already joined the Newman Club (Catholic campus ministry) and plan to join some other organizations. The Student Organization Fair was very helpful. It had representatives from almost every club on campus. It was a great way to see what clubs are out there and to get more information about the clubs of interest. Two clubs I may potentially join are the mountaineering and whitewater club and the SEAS club.

The Carolinian Creed is a good creed to live by. The creed is something I would like to live by to make me a better person not only as a student, but for life. It outlines many of the values I already live by and wish to strive for to become the best person I can be.