News

Students Discover Same Answer Despite Different Circumstances

(Released 5/19/10)

JAMESTOWN - Many students work at regular jobs, and while their occupational circumstances vary, they have a common problem - how to get the college degree they desire.

Their work schedules don't allow them to be traditional students. Many also have family commitments that keep them out of the classroom.

For example:

• Linnea Matson, a young Randleman High School graduate, had a rare opportunity to

work in Finland for a year but didn't want to lag behind in entering college.

• Irene Varney of Greensboro, a college dropout, still longed to get the degree she

missed. Although employed and the mother of two small children, the idea of obtaining a degree was still in the back of her mind. She is finishing up her Associate of Arts degree this semester at age 27.

• At age 42, Joseph Wells of King wanted to get the education necessary to qualify for a job change while staying on his present job.

• Jim Hasse, 43, of Oak Ridge was intent on earning a degree but also needed to care for his two sons while his wife had to do a great deal of traveling in her job.

The solution for each of them was the same -- study online, a way many in today's fast-paced society are earning college degrees. These students found the online opportunities they needed at Guilford Technical Community College.

Online learning continues to grow, even at the community college level, said Deana St. Peter at GTCC. "From 2007 until 2009, we had one program online - an Associates of Arts degree in General Studies. We started in the fall of 2007 with 18 students, and had our first two graduates in December.

"We added eight new programs in the fall of 2009, swelling from around 50 to 60 students to around 250 for the fall," said St. Peter, program coordinator for online degrees.

GTCC now has 10 online eDegree programs, and will add four more programs this fall, she said. "While we have a few younger students, 18-20, most of our students are adults who have been out of school for a few years," she said.

"Our programs allow our students the flexibility to attend college on their schedules. Without eDegree programs, many of these students could not attend. We also are starting to see an increase in students in our programs who do not reside in the area. They enroll because we offer the programs they want online," St. Peter said.

Matson sings the praises of the GTCC program via e-mail from her interning/volunteering position at an English immersion school in Finland. "This is a job I would love to continue after I graduate," she said. She is pursuing a degree in elementary education.

The eDegree classes are "perfect" for Varney, who enrolled in another college a few years ago only to be disappointed that the college "wasn't like the brochure advertised."Her sights are set on a four-year on-line Bachelor of Science degree in electrical- computational tech engineering, she said.

Wells has worked full-time for Hanes Brands for 22 years and also works part-time as a meat clerk in a grocery store. He is pursuing a Medical Transcription diploma on-line. GTCC's eDegree classes really make it possible for me to pursue the education I need, in a convenient manner that fits my schedule," Wells said.

He also likes the quick responses he gets from faculty members. "I feel as if my teachers are with me 24/7, just an e-mail, instant message or phone call away," Wells said.

While students have a variety of reasons for choosing eDegree studies, Matson also finds that it's a matter of togetherness - something she and her mother Kristine Matson of Sophia can talk about, even if the conversations must be via e-mail.

Kristine Matson also is enrolled in the eDegree General Education program and has become especially interested in health and psychology classes.

She also plans to seek a four-year degree after graduating from GTCC. "I've always wanted to go to college some day and the eDegree program at GTCC is very doable," Kristine Matson said.

Matson, who finished high school in 1983, said that she needed an online study program that was flexible. "I had looked into an online degree program several years ago at a different college and it was quite restrictive. I would have to commit to staying with all of the students enrolled at the same as I did.

"With nine (of 11) children still at home, I couldn't commit to that. One never knows what will happen with kids." Her children range in age from four to 26.

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