“̨ʹٷվ has been absolutely incredible to my journey, more than I could have ever imagined. I had been home-schooled and came to ̨ʹٷվ five years after I had finished high school. I was unsure how I would do, but I was able to thrive here because of the instructors and small class sizes.”
A lot of praying, studying and a few cries every now and then. But it’s a great program with great people who teach you a lot. You learn a lot about yourself during the process.”
The festival is held each spring to encourage and support the pursuit of literary arts among Rankin County high school students and foster their interest in higher education.
“The night was so surreal. It was confirmation of all my hard work and I could not have done it without the help of my instructor and my WHUC News 7 team. It was just a blessing to see our hard work prevail.”
Her record of service is 42 years and counting, as she continues to serve as a part-time instructor in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department.
“Being chosen for something like this makes me feel that my hard work is paying off as I’ve been attending ̨ʹٷվ as a full-time student and working part-time in the Student Services area on the Raymond campus since last summer,”
Ashby is among three student speakers in as many ceremonies May 12 inside the Muse Center on the Rankin Campus.
“I was one of seven kids growing up, so I’ve always been around them,” she said. “I love seeing those little ‘a-ha’ moments when they figure something out and get interested in learning. I was homeschooled and helped my mom teach my siblings.
Bolton has attended ̨ʹٷվ on three scholarships and is president of the Alpha Iota Kappa chapter of Phi Theta Kappa honor society at the Jackson Campus-Nursing/Allied Health Center.
“I’ve always been a mechanic, but I’d love to learn more about these,” Barrett said. “So I thought I’d ‘go big’ and attend the program here.”