Education
My Daughter Continues to Overcome Obstacles
From high school dropout to closing in on a post-grad degree
Author’s note: This is an update to a previous post from last year.
It’s been fifteen years since my daughter, Briana, dropped out of high school while living in Kansas with her mom.
Not long after that, she came to live with me. She worked a few odd jobs, the longest at a gas station convenience store. While there, Briana decided to pick herself up and strive for more.
She earned her GED, the first step toward earning her associate’s and bachelor’s degrees. Yeah. Two degrees. I have one degree, and I’m 64.
She might have seen Shaquille O’Neal explain the rules to his kids on YouTube.
The problem with that is there’s no cheese to leave her. I collect a few items I’ll eventually pass on to Briana and her sisters.
I suspect my daughters will be more successful in their lives. I hope humankind will at least leave them a planet where they can safely live.
One class, sometimes two, at a time, Briana began to pile up her college credits at Southern New Hampshire University. Two years ago, she received her associate’s degree in criminal justice. And today, Briana walked across the stage on Nov. 6, 2021, at SNHU Arena in Manchester, N.H., to receive her bachelor’s degree in communications.
While doing this, she continued to work part-time at a gas station. She finally walked away from that gig to find another job that has enriched her professional life and, fortunately, her bank account.
And now, Briana is a budding entrepreneur, creating products for friends, family, and coworkers while improving her craft and starting her own business on Etsy.
Update: For the past year, Briana’s been taking one class at a time to earn her MBA from SNHU. I didn’t realize how close she was to complete her journey. Ten months from now, she will satisfy her degree requirements and walk across the stage to accept her master’s degree. How freaking cool is that?
My parents didn’t attend college. My brothers went into the military. My twin sister — who got the brains and the looks in the family, earned her master’s degree as a nurse practitioner long ago. She is the only sibling to earn more than an associate’s degree.
I want to think our family’s next generation will reach higher.
I couldn’t be more proud of the journey Briana began several years ago. More importantly, it’s a journey of which she’s immensely proud.
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