OXFORD — Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School class of 2025 graduate Lauren Millett will head off to Husson University next month under the best of circumstances.

All but $2,000 of her freshman tuition expenses have been covered by scholarships.

According to Millett, Oxford Hills Principal Paul Bickford was instrumental in her starting college off on the right financial footing.

“Mr. Bickford was personally involved with my process,” she told the Advertiser Democrat. “He helped me make a list of schools to look at and choose to apply. He helped edit my college essay and wrote me an amazing letter of recommendation I’ve used for everything.”

His assistance extended to scholarships as well, reviewing what matched up with Millett’s goals and circumstances. By the time Oxford Hills Class Night rolled around this spring she had landed enough to cover most of her first year of college, including the Maine Education Services Foundation’s $5,000 Richard H. Pierce Memorial Scholarship. 

“Before that night, Mr. Bickford asked me if I’d heard about the Richard Pierce scholarship,” she said. “And I hadn’t heard a thing, so he let me know that I’d gotten it. I was so excited, and I’m so grateful for every one.”

Husson was not one of the schools on Millett’s early radar. But the university’s field hockey coach, Kaitlin Dolloff, reached out to her last year, inviting her to consider playing on Husson’s team.

“She had seen my playing, and at a couple of clinics. I decided to take a look, went on a tour and we liked it. Then the coach invited me for an overnight visit with a couple of the players. After I met with her, she offered me a spot on the roster!”

Millett will be on the team but she won’t be able to compete until her sophomore year due to an injury that requires surgery. The nature of her injury was not found until after she had played through her senior seasons of field hockey and competitive cheerleading. She wants to start her new life at a new school on two feet, and will have repair surgery done while on Christmas break at the end of this year.

As it turned out, she was able to check the boxes at Husson that were important for her.

“I looked at St. Joseph’s (in Standish), the University of New England, University of Maine Orono, and Nichols College in Dudley, Massachusetts. St. Joe’s was a little too small, but I didn’t want too big. I want a college like my community — tightknit, where I won’t get lost,” she said.

Millett will major in nursing.

“I’ve always been drawn to the medical field. I have had asthma since I was little. With so many people helping me as I grew up, I’ve always wanted to help others back,” she said. “After I graduate, I want to work as a travel nurse for a couple of years while I continue my education with online classes.”

The health science class Millett took at Oxford Hills Technical School her sophomore year helped her decide nursing was for her, although she found job shadowing at MaineHealth Stephens Hospital in Norway difficult at first. 

“It was rough for me — my first days were in the operating room and wound care department, and I don’t think I was really mentally prepared for what I saw,” she said. “I told my mother I wasn’t sure I could do it. But after working in different departments it wasn’t bad and I knew I could. It helped me be open to a range of nursing specialties and I will go with the field where I find my passion.

“I am so thankful to everyone who helped me get here — my parents and Mr. Bickford, who encouraged me to give Husson a serious look. I’m grateful to the whole community for the scholarships I’ve gotten. It helps so much,” Millett said.