Section B
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice.
If you had told me back in 1971 -- the year I graduated high school -- that I'd be going off to college soon, I would have assured you that you were sorely mistaken. I was the son of a plumber living in western Massachusetts, and we had all assumed that in the end I'd be a plumber, too.
I spent the year after high school working in construction. Then one day I went to visit some friends at Dean College, a two-year residential college 45 minutes outside of Boston, and my mind-set began to change. As I walked around campus and listened to my friends talk about their experiences, I realized this was an opportunity to change my path that might not come again. So I enrolled at Dean, and I can honestly say it was a life-altering experience.
The school's philosophy is to educate, energize and inspire. In fact, it was a Dean professor, Charlie Kramer, who ignited my passion for economics and taught me how to think analytically. After all these years, I still have my notes from his economics classes, and I've referred back to them from time to time -- even as I went on to Babson College, where I earned my bachelor of science degree in economics and then an M.B.A.. I'm proud to say that today I'm a member of Dean College's board of trustees.
Would I be running a global consulting company with $17 billion in revenue and 130,000 employees today if I'd followed a different path？ Who knows？ But there is no doubt that my two years at Dean College not only prepared me for advancing my education and gearing up for a career, but also transformed me as a person. And that's not a bad start no matter where life takes you.
But while Americans are waking up to the idea that we need to sharpen our competitive edge in the world -- President George W. Bush threw down the gauntlet in his State of the Union address earlier this year -- many still overlook our 'system of community and junior colleges.
Whenever I get the chance to talk to young people, I urge them to consider options other than four-year schools. Junior and community colleges can help them become better equipped to continue their education and to face real-world challenges. These colleges can smooth their transition from high school to work life, provide them with core decision-making skills and teach them how to think and learn.
Community colleges excel at working with local businesses to identify specific needs. Chances are, if there's a large manufacturing plant in your town, your community college offers technical training in conjunction with the plant. Better skills and better pay lead to happier, more productive employees. That boosts the economy, which gives us all a better standard of living.
The author made up his mind to go to college ______.

A. because his family members urged him to do so
B. when he graduated from high school
C. suddenly when he visited some friends at Dean College
D. because he is a member of Dean College' s board of trustees