STEP BY STEP: The Educational Journey

In my job as an advisor and academic coach for Kanawha Valley Community and Technical College, I am asked this question every day, “Which educational pathway should I choose?” and my response is always the same, “Where do you want to go?”  The answer will determine which pathway is best for you, but it is not always a quick and easy answer.  It takes a lot of inner soul searching and not surprisingly, the result is different for every person.  I like to start with…

“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” 

Okay, now we have a starting point.  No matter which educational pathway you choose, you will be growing professionally and personally, whether it is short term training or a long term degree, but you do not want to waste what you have already accumulated in regards to your education.   The following two steps are the most important to begin your educational journey:

1)       Gather up your training and education

If you have completed a U.S. Department of Labor Approved Apprenticeship program, it is worth college credit at most community colleges.  National certifications such as a Certified Nursing Assistant are worth college credit.  Your workplace training can also count towards your educational goals.  Maybe you already have a degree, but it is not in the field you are currently interested in.  Those college credits are still viable and you may only need a few courses in your field of interest to complete.  

Organize all of this documentation in a notebook for easy reference.  Now you have a “portfolio of education” and you can continue to build on it. 

2)       Get in touch with an educational professional

Contact the nearest college in your community.  It may be a community college, four year college or university.  Ask for an advisor or an academic coach to help you determine what options are available for you.  Be sure to take your “portfolio of education” with you and also a list of questions for your visit.  Allow enough time to discuss in detail what you have already achieved and what you desire to accomplish.  Be warned…you will most likely have more questions to answer and legwork to do when you leave, but it will be worth it in the long run.  Below are a few things to ask about during your visit with an educational advisor or coach.

A)     What scholarships are available to help me pay for my classes?

B)      Are there accelerated programs

C)      Do they partner with any local businesses or agencies

D)     Ask to see the program requirements for the following:

• Two Year Degrees:
  • Occupational Development AAS
  • Board of Governors AAS
• Four Year Degrees:
  • Regents Bachelor of Arts Degree
• Master’s Degree:
  • Some postgraduate degrees build on coursework finished at the undergraduate level such as a Masters of Arts in Teaching, which will accept your coursework in a discipline like History and offer courses at the postgrad level specific to teaching.   

Now that you have started clearing out a pathway in your educational journey, what will be YOUR next step? 

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As I look out my window into the backyard, robins are flying back and forth tending to their young in little nests.  My yard must be a great place to raise your kids, because during the last few weeks we have had a nest on the window sill, in the rhododendron, beside the lake, and in the trees.  A baby muskrat has been seen in our driveway and a pregnant opossum walked slowly across the yard.  The baby ducks and geese are everywhere as their parents squawk and quack warnings to stay together.

As I watch nature raise her young, I contemplate about all the chores that come with parenting and how our perception of these activities can impact how we see ourselves.  Some may think it drudgery to do the laundry, walk the aisles of the local grocery store, or make breakfast before the sun comes up.  We can choose to perceive these chores as unworthy and meaningless or an everyday blessing.

Laundry changes as our little ones grow and change their styles, from onesies with the words “momma’s little angel” embroidered on the front to the jeans with the knees worn out and t-shirts donning pictures of the angry birds.  It’s like watching the history of your child through their clothes.  Now he is doing his own laundry and I long for the moments of holding each piece and seeing in my mind’s eye the crawling and falling and running that happened in those clothes.

Food is the most authentic way to keep your kids healthy, so shopping for that food and choosing what’s good for your family is a lesson in nutrition and a gift of health every week.  I feel such joy when asked for certain dishes that are the household favorites.  Trips to the grocery store were an adventure for my child as he sat in the buggy and I filled it up with all the good food we were going to eat.

If we look at what we do for our family as gifts of love instead of drudgery, our children will learn to do them with love as well.  They will want to give these gifts back to us and as they grow up and move away, they will give these gifts of care and love to their families.

There are rewards for all the hard work we do as parents and we receive them without warning like breakfast in bed on Mother’s Day.  What are your everyday blessings?

The View From My Window

My day starts with the view from my window with the tangerine curtains.  It is just a back yard, but I find myself up in the trees, slithering through the grass, and paddling with the ducks in the pond.

The view you see is not what is outside, but often times, what’s inside you that perpetuates the view.

I could see the run down old camper that has been parked there for years, or that the grass is so high, that the bunnies have a hard time hopping, but I choose to see the beauty instead.

What do you choose to see from your window?