In kindergarten, parents encourage their children to follow their dreams and pursue a field they love. In college, when parents have to pay for school, the idea of pursuing a field based on passion changes drastically to pursuing a field that can potentially help pay off loans. This contradiction can make some fields and majors a little more difficult to follow than others."I knew I wanted to study religion coming into college," said Vanessa Van Auken, a senior religion and political science major. "But I was really scared starting as a religion major.

Forget working after college. A few days after she crosses the graduation stage, Camille Blackerby will join her fellow senior and golf teammate in Sweden for a week. But, when she runs out of money, the mechanical engineering major has a job lined up with a small engineering firm in Dallas starting June 18.

Purdy-McGuire Inc. has 40 members on staff, but Blackerby said that's the way she likes it--small is her style.

A self-professed small-town girl, Blackerby hails from Breckenridge, a town just east of Fort Worth with a population less than 6,000.

When first laying eyes on Rory Phillips, there is no question this third-year senior was born a leader. His fiery red curls and stony pale eyes immediately accentuate his presence in any crowd.Phillips takes his time answering questions - comfortable in moments of silence.

As his friend of three years, Krista Jennings remembers Phillips seems quiet and almost stoic at first glance, but he soon relieves any tension through witty and humorous remarks.

In reaction to the significant amount of students who have experienced deaths in their families, Mental Health Services and a campus priest plan to continue what they say is a successful grief support group.Laura Crawley, assistant dean of campus life for health promotion, said campus life has been looking to have a grief program for a while.

It is a group made up of students and "two folks with tremendous experience with grief, hope and loss," Crawley said.

The TCU Opera Studio will be performing "La Tragedie de Carmen," a classic tale of love, jealousy and revenge performed entirely in French this weekend at the Music Building South. Adapted from British director Peter Brook, the long production has been condensed into 90 minutes.

"It is concise yet dramatically powerful," said Richard Estes, the director of the TCU Opera Studio.

Don Jose, a Spanish officer, falls for a gypsy girl, Carmen, who falls for a bullfighter, Escamillo. Don Jose's downward spiral into an obsessive, jealous spell leads to murder and shame.

With graduation caps strapped to their heads and diplomas in hand, many students are preparing to take the graduation walk - a year late.The additional, fifth year, also nicknamed the "victory lap," isn't uncommon anymore.

Fifty-one percent of college students graduate from baccalaureate institutions within five years of initial enrollment, according to the American College Testing's Web site.

Although more students are currently taking an extra year to graduate, the ACT Web site said the graduation rate has remained the same.

The Tarrant Regional Auto Theft Task Force is teaming up with TCU Police to offer a free VIN number acid-etching service in the alumni parking lot from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday. VIN-etching is an acid-etching process that embeds the VIN number on car windows, said crime prevention officer Pam Christian.

The VIN number is the vehicle identification number found in each car where the windshield meets the dashboard, Christian said.

Cheers to the Greek community deciding against bringing the discriminatory Delta Zeta to campus, thereby protecting the integrity of sororities and fraternities at TCU.Jeers to the Colby Hall flasher for showing us what no one wanted to see. We're still having nightmares. Unless you are a swimmer, being shaven is not a point of pride.

Cheers to Beata Jones for making the Neeley School a little bit safer. Her heroic act of chasing a devious wallet thief on the run would make anyone scared to rob a Frog.

As commencement goes from being a dream to a reality in a few days time, it also serves as a reminder for graduating seniors of how complete the graduation ceremony is with the presence of family. For the student-athlete, the time and attention given to his or her sport can limit family interaction. But for Neil P. Dougherty, family played more of a hands-on role during his four-year journey at TCU.

Some days the credit card offers seem to flood the mailbox. The envelopes offer various rates and rewards for using the card. What the offers don't say, however, is how easy it is to quickly get into debt and how important it is to build good credit.Barbara Wood, assistant professor of professional practice, said she thinks it's good for students to have a credit card for emergencies, but, before they get a credit card, they should also have the income to pay off what they charge.

"I think one is sufficient," Wood said. "Particularly if you're looking to build credit."

TCU's largest graduating class will end its undergraduate career May 12. Chancellor Victor Boschini said this spring will see the largest graduating class in the history of TCU. Because the graduating classes are progressively growing larger, there will be no speakers at the commencement ceremony, he said.

The ceremony will be held in Daniel-Meyer Coliseum.

To accommodate the large size of the graduating class, the ceremony will be divided into two sections, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.