Then and Now

In biology class, the professor would tell the class, 'You should remember this from chemistry.' For me, chemistry was 19 years ago! It was intimidating. But the professors were really supportive. One teacher reminded me that participating means more than just being smart. He said, show up, participate and do my best. It worked out.

I had been a stay-at-home mom and knew I needed another purpose as my kids got older, so I decided to go back to school at 38 to become an Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA). None of my college credits counted anymore, so it took me two years to re-do classes and take the prerequisites for the OTA program.

I figured I would just take classes while my four kids were in school. We all studied together, and they saw how hard I worked. They saw that I was human. I had to re-take anatomy but earned an A- the second time.

I first leaned about occupational therapy when my son developed a chronic disease. I looked into it more and saw I could work with children. Since graduating, I've worked at the Alpine School District and absolutely love what I do.

"I figured I would just take classes while my four kids were in school. We all studied together, and they saw how hard I worked."

Advice

Embrace being older and returning to school. And when you make study groups, make sure those young people are in your group because they are smart—and they will help you. Also, apply for scholarships even if you think you won't qualify for one. SLCC makes it simple. I only had enough savings to pay for one semester at a time but ended up getting scholarships.