I was honored to be asked by my Transitional Studies instructors, Judy McGuire and Amanda McLean, to share a little bit about my journey towards achieving my educational goals, and the significant hardships and challenges I have had to overcome in order to reach them.
Upon receiving this opportunity, I went on to my next class feeling excited, and to be honest, quite full of myself. 45 minutes later, I exited the building having failed a test so badly it put me back two letter grades in math. I am sharing this embarrassing and, more importantly, humbling experience with you for a very good reason.
When I think of other humbling experiences in my life, my mind, thankfully, goes more towards the positive these days. For example, I am deeply humbled by the help I have received during my time here at CCC&TI.
You see, for a long time, I wasn’t willing to ask for help at all. From 1st grade through middle school, I was entirely homeschooled.
Though I had assistance early on with reading and writing from my mother, and some help from long-distance tutors and teachers, I was mostly taught to work on my studies as independently as possible.
This way of learning worked fine, up until high school. Though I managed to get myself through 9th grade and into 10th with relative ease, it was at this point I encountered my largest roadblock thus far.
My grandmother, who I had been living with, began to decline in health, and needed more and more assistance in her daily life. I took up this role gladly, but my grades suffered. After dropping out of school to better care for her, my educational future grew more uncertain.
Over the next decade and a half, I was in and out of online courses, trying and failing again and again to earn my diploma while continuing to care for her.
True to my stubborn nature, I kept doing the same things, over and over, hoping this time would be different.
None of them were until, at age 29, I finally had to step back, admit defeat, and look for another way.
It was at this point I looked towards my local community college. My partner had attended the school a decade before me, speaking very fondly of time spent here and encouraging me to see what options were available.
Upon signing up for the Transitional Studies program and beginning my work towards my high school equivalency diploma, I was immediately struck by how kind, encouraging, and supportive the faculty and staff were.
It was with their help I was able to finish my studies in a little over a month and a half, graduating with honors.
With the aid, advice, and patience of my transitional adviser Meghan Edmisten, I very quickly was able to begin working towards my Associate in Science, finishing my first semester this month.
I would like to close by offering encouragement to anyone who may see themselves in my story: those who didn’t follow traditional pathways, who are balancing the responsibilities of caring for others, or who have been placed in circumstances that they feel necessitates them setting aside their aspirations and dreams.
The journey may not be easy, but there are opportunities, and asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Even if you have tried and fallen short in the past, it is always okay to take a step back, take a breath, and try a different way.
If you are willing to take that first step, know that the staff and instructors at CCC&TI are here to support you on your new path; your past does not define your future, what you do next does.
Just take it one step, one goal, one success at a time. No matter where you are starting from, it’s never too late to change your story