Return to Learn
Alma College joined the Michigan Governor’s Office and other participating higher education institutions last November in a statewide campaign inviting Michigan adults to “return to learn” by either completing or initiating study leading to a college degree. The following stories feature two adult students who returned to College in an attempt to open new doors of economic opportunity.
Returning to college: ‘The smartest thing I’ve ever done’
The year was 1998. Alma resident Mary Rosalez was 36 years old, newly divorced, the mother of five children, and unsure how to support her family.
“Everybody told me I had to go back to school,” she says. “I had done well in high school and was salutatorian of my class. At first I thought about going to a community college.”
A friend told her to try Alma College, but Mary had a million excuses.
“I told her I couldn’t afford it, Alma was too hard, I didn’t know how to use a computer, and I hadn’t read much of anything,” she says. “But she convinced me to get my ACT scores out of the archives and apply for admission.”
She not only was accepted at Alma, she qualified for enough financial aid to cover full tuition. She also received several local scholarships to cover her books and some home expenses.
She started taking classes in 1999 with no idea what she wanted to do. She took English 101 her first semester and fell in love with it.
“The approach to literature and writing had changed a lot since I was in high school,” she says. “It was a lot more fun.
“I had a an absolutely fabulous experience at Alma. The students were incredibly accepting of me, and I made a lot of friends. I got involved on campus. There were a few times when being a single mom was an issue, but I only missed class twice in four and one-half years. Being a single mom in college was definitely doable,” she says.
She graduated in 2003 with a major in English and then went on to Central Michigan University for her master’s degree. Now she’s back at Alma College, teaching rhetoric and literature courses and telling others about the benefits of a college education.
“Going back to college was the smartest thing I’ve ever done,” she says.
Making a better life
The frustrations of balancing a full-time job with being a full-time student resulted in Tracey Roberts Fuller leaving Alma College after only three semesters.
But she never gave up on her dream to be a teacher.
“There’s nothing more I would like to do than teach special education,” says Fuller, who dropped out of college in 1998 but returned in 2003. The 27-year-old plans to graduate in 2006 with a degree in education.
Marriage, the birth of two babies and a preference to stay at home with her young children delayed Fuller’s return to college. But she had only to look to her mother, Brenda Roberts, for inspiration. Brenda, over the course of many years, took one college course at a time until eventually graduating from Alma in 1998.
“My mother wanted a college degree to improve her economic situation, to make a better life for her family,” says Fuller, who directs the Gratiot County Special Olympics Basketball Program in addition to being a college student.
Fuller also is secretary of Alma’s Non-traditional Students Organization, which serves as a support group for adult students. The group holds regular meetings and raises money for a local baby pantry in Alma.
“I have no regrets about returning to college,” she says. “I see more and more non-traditional students who are focused on finishing up their degree requirements.”
Alma College will help any prospective student create a degree completion plan. An admissions representative can talk about the availability of financial aid, how to build on previous coursework, how to transfer credits from one institution to another, and how to pursue the degree and career you are most interested in. Call 1-800-321-ALMA or send an e-mail inquiry to the Admissions Office.
— Mike Silverthorn
