ACE #248: How Education Changed My Life

As a high school student, I realized early on that I wanted to go into the news. I was all for being in front of a camera.  I made up in my own mind that I was a natural at it! I thought I wanted to be just like Oprah Winfrey.  Then something life-changing happened.  Two children of someone I knew died in a house fire.  It was at that point I realized that reporting bad news was not for me.  I would be the biggest cry baby in the land. 

By the time I went to college, I decided to major in two of the things that I was most natural at doing:  writing and teaching.  I got my degree in English/Secondary Education.  I had the best time in undergraduate because I was able to learn, but I also loved the sense of community, fellowship, and networking that were at my disposal while attending a historically black university.  Upon graduation, that's when the news bug hit me again.  I ended up at The Ohio State University studying Journalism on a full fellowship.  I learned all of the fancy techniques and soon realized that I knew very little about the field.  I wasn't a natural at it!  I had to really bear down and study.  Ugh!  While I learned a lot about journalism as a craft - it was the lessons outside of the classroom that changed me.

I met people from all over the world - from different religions, various ethnicities and races, many cultural backgrounds, and even different caste systems.  I gained true respect for diversity in its truest sense, but I also learned survival and life skills while being a few hours away from home.  It was so much more than what I had bargained for since my high school days. 

Since then, I've held jobs for the United States Department of Agriculture, Kentucky State University, the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture 4-H Program, Berea College, the Kentucky Department of Education, Georgetown College and my current gig, the Council of Postsecondary Education just to name a few.  Doors have been opened that no one can close because of my education. I have enjoyed the journey.

Now, my love for education has expanded my level of ministry and outreach opportunities.  I am always mindful of the familiar Scripture, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required..." and I embrace it.

I invite you to attend the St. Paul Academic and Cultural Enrichment (SPACE) Project 1st annual College and Career Festival:

 

2014 College and Career Festival

Saturday, July 26, 2014

10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Big Spring Park

Park Street, Versailles, Ky.

Free event for middle and high school students

It’s never too early to prepare!