I got pregnant with my son in April of my freshman year of college and it was four months after my MS diagnosis. I had my son two months early via emergency C-section so I had to withdraw from the classes I was in at the time. I was told to, “Approach the chair” and was able to get all of my tuition money back except for the fees for each class. But because my sophomore year of college only consisted of one semester, I was behind in the credits and so once I went back to school after having Sean, I went full-time until I graduated.
I have recounted this story so many times because, even today, I can’t believe that I did it. Even before I had Sean, while I was pregnant, living with my Parents, I told myself and I set a goal being out of their house and on my own by the time Sean was five and when he was going to start kindergarten. I have written before how I used to pour over the class offering lists all the time in order to maximize the number of classes I took each semester. But, I was working in a deficit even taking 15 credits a semester, it’s so was going to take a while for me to finish. I kept looking over the class offerings and they enjoyed the seven week courses in the summer the best. They were quick and I was able to add to the number of credits I needed to graduate.
I remember, specifically, looking at the course offerings for what would be the summer and I was in between a sophomore and a junior. I looked at all of the classes that were being offered and I crunched some numbers. I figured out that if I took 23 credits that summer of the classes that were being offered, I would have a full schedule in the fall, student teach in the winter, “Walk” (Graduate) in the summer while I had two additional classes to finish but then I could get a job teaching the following fall. it was ahead of schedule but that’s what I was going to do! Now, all I had to do was DO it!
I figured that if I took a full schedule each seven week session, that would put me on track to graduate the following summer. In order to be approved to take that many classes, I had to, “Petition the chair” for permission. In that meeting with them, I laid out the fact that I had a two-year-old at home and was trying to condense my schedule because I was going to teach and if I didn’t take that many classes in the summer, it will delay graduation another semester and I wouldn’t be hired in the middle of a school year so I would be unemployed for entire school year after I graduated. I remember that he looked at my grades and told me that it looks like I can do it and if I want to do it, I was given permission.
it was EXTREMELY difficult but I got it done! Everything worked out precisely and Sean and I were able to be out on our own by the time Sean was three. I took the contract from CCA that said that I was just hired in and was able to get an apartment. When Sean was over yesterday, we were talking about college and somehow I just offhandedly said, “Or, you can take 23 credits in one summer.” I said it as if it was no big deal but it is something that I did. Sean surprised me and he looked directly at me and said, “That’s savage!”
I was completely taken aback by his statement but thinking about it, I guess it kind of was. I told him that I will NEVER do it again and I thought I was going to die! I also told him that I had a goal and I had a child so I HAD to do things in order to get things completed on time. but, even though in retrospect I think that’s crazy, I’m glad that I was able to do it because Sean and I were able to be out on our own when he started preschool. It is an incredible story to think about but I had to do what I had to do! And if that”Savage,” so be it!