Not Bad for a High School Dropout

Maya Angelou, renown poet once said “You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it”. Many may see this as another cliché motivational quote plastered on the social media pages of ones we idolize, but behind those words lay wisdom and truth. For some, that defeat may be a broken relationship, a failed audition, an unsuccessful business, or a lost job, but for me my battle with defeat was entirely related to my education. Furthermore, before community college I truly believed I had no future, and for that I owe this experience my entire life.

Approaching the final years of high school my life long struggles with mental health and anxiety began to unfold. Leaving my house each morning became agonizing and by my senior year I ceased to return. Being a high school drop out with failing grades was not the life I dreamed of but sadly it was my truth. However, I persevered, picked myself back up, and I finished my schooling online. Feeling that sense of defeat was not something I could feel again, and after a gap year filled with personal growth, I enrolled in a summer class at N.C.C. (Norwalk Community College) that for lack of better words, changed my life.

This two year ride to my Associates degree started with my first A. I can clearly remember my first day seated in my Western Civilizations class, which had been the first time I was back in school in over a year. I had gotten used to defeat and I had no expectations coming into this classroom other than it was another shot at what I longed to do. Completing this course with just an average C could motivate me to continue on, and give me hope for the future to come. However, that was not exactly the outcome I received, after four weeks in this rushed summer course I checked my grade book to see an 'A' perched right next to my class number. As normal as an A sounds to the average person, it was the opposite for the young 18 year old I was. Tears were shed, and a future was back in site with full-time classes scheduled for that Fall.

Fast Forward, about 2 years, three 4.0's, and one pandemic later, and I was watching my community college graduation from my living room, surrounded by my family and a healthy 6 foot distance from my great-aunt. Graduating with my associates and a 3.9 GPA, in an honors society seemed unreal, like a fictional teen-drama with some plot twist in the last quarter. However, that plot-twist was my life and it truly proved to me that anything is possible with time and realization. That anxiety filled high school student had now become a summa cum-laude graduate ready to transfer to a four year university. Furthermore, thats exactly what I did and just a few weeks prior I got my acceptance letter to the University of Central Florida as a Marketing Major. Now, I had to pack my bags and move from Connecticut to Florida and finally get that college experience away from home.

Now, I am nearing the end of my second semester here at the University of Central Florida and I completed my last semester with a 4.0 GPA, but even better a place to call home . This motivation to succeed has now followed me into the sunshine state and I continue to try and prove more of myself, despite that past that somewhat haunts me. Within the last 8 months I have been asked to join two more wonderful honors societies at UCF and have started to venture into the world of business and my career . Exploring the professional world has become a new challenge and a great way to push myself even further. Furthermore, I have now even received some internship offers and mentors that can help me further my success. This is a long trip from the person I was six years ago, but it was necessary in my maturity and growth.

Through this article and my story, I strive to educate those on the topic of mental health, and education. It can be difficult to get the help you need soon enough, and I surely did not. Taking a gap year, and doing things the non-traditional way only helped me better myself and secured me a more promising future, as it can many young students in similar situations and to anyone feeling lost. Following that I say if you need time to breathe, take it, if you hate your job, start searching for another, and if you hate peanut butter, simply don't eat it, the power lies in your hands, take it!