“I’ve really been impowered by my professors to submit my work out there, and now I’m being told that what I’m writing is worth something and needs to be put out there. It’s given me the opportunity to write and be heard, which I never thought was possible”
Callie Hibbitts ’25, a former Tarleton State University first-generation English major, who had a focus in creative writing, graduated in December of 2025. While in high school Hibbitts took on leadership roles that transferred to her college career. While at Tarleton State she served as a student worker in the English Department and student editor-in-chief of the Bosque River Review, Tarleton State’s literary journal.
Originally from Seymore, Texas, Hibbitts never even thought college would be an option. Unfortunately, both of her parents passed away while she was in middle school, and after that she was raised by sister. If it weren’t for the scholarships Hibbitts received, she would not have been able to go to Tarleton State and become the woman she is today.
While at Tarleton State, Hibbitts received the Dick Smith LFA Scholarship, the Davidson Presidential Scholarship, the Honors Degree Scholarship, and the Tarleton Pride Scholarship. She was also a part of the Tarleton Promise Program, which covered all remaining costs after her scholarships and grants. It is because of these programs that Hibbitts decided to attend Tarleton State. She knew that if she did, she wouldn’t have to worry about paying for school and would be allowed to have other opportunities like running the Bosque River Review and working in the English department. She was even given the opportunity to write the biography of one of Tarleton State’s esteemed alumni.
Tarleton State’s English department really made a lasting impact on Hibbitts. It was actually the former department head that pushed her to pursue a creative writing focus after she took his class. After that, writing was all she did; she even started submitting her writings to different literary reviews. It is because of all the opportunities the English Department gave her that she was so certain about her future.
Hibbitts was also given the opportunity to grow as a person. Even with her scholarships, going into college was scary. Stephenville was huge compared to her hometown. She was very shy and introverted, basically just on survival mode. Her goal was to just make it the next four years and hope she was okay afterwards. But she wasn’t just okay, she had “flourished” in her words and became a lot more confident by working very social jobs and constantly presenting her creative work. She knows she made friendships that will last a lifetime, and was really just a lot less afraid coming out of college than she was going in.
She describes her college journey as a series of doorways. Doorways that opened up opportunities for her when she needed them most. Starting with her scholarships, to her professors pushing her to submit her writing, then being told her work was good when feeling insecure and finally ending with the opportunity to write the biography. These are all opportunities she wouldn’t have believed possible her freshman year.
After she graduated in December, Hibbitts planned on attending grad school and obtaining her MFA. She wanted to go get her PhD and eventually teach creative writing at a college level, while still writing her own creative works.
“The people I met put that into me because I had them and saw the way they affected me and all I could think was how wonderful it would be to be that for somebody else.”