As another academic year has ended, new obstacles have occurred.
Since December 2015, I have been working with Ohio Vocational Rehab to obtain additional funding to complete my final two semesters (6 GE’s, and 3 courses for my two minors). I have been made to jump through so many hoops for them that I feel like it is just about time for me to give up.
Last month a reporter from the Newark Advocate came to campus to interview me on a new scholarship starting in Fall 2016 that will help seniors struggling to find the funds to cover their remaining tuition. See article:
http://www.newarkadvocate.com/story/news/local/2016/04/28/osu-newark-offer-cash-help-seniors-graduate/83280612/
While this is a great thing and can help many students, like myself, it is not a guarantee, just as the OVR scholarship is not a guarantee.
Financial Aid has awarded me $1,000 to complete 9 courses (6 if I drop my two minors). This amount of funding is not going to cover even half of the Fall 16 semester. I am running out of options, time, patience, and the motivation.
I have been looking at alternative options, one of them being transferring all of my credits to another institution in order to potentially be able to graduate over Summer 2016 without having to take any additional courses. This sounds like the most feasible option, but it is also the option I least want to take.
I have wanted to graduate as a Buckeye for the longest time now. Although it is only a metaphor, it is a strong metaphor that any OSU Buckeye student has: I have the Buckeye blood in my veins. If things do work out that I can transfer all of my credits to another institution, I feel like I have not only let myself down, but my family, my friends, my mentors, and all of the underclassmen that I have mentored over the years.
This is such a tough decision for me. A decision that I still remain unclear on the path to chose. I know the important thing is to get a degree, so I can move on to my masters, but there is this internal tug-of-war inside my head.
In the next month I will know the results if the credits will transfer, and whether or not I can graduate over Summer from a separate institution.
Regardless of the choice I will have to make in June, I have never regretted any of time here at The Ohio State University at Newark campus. The time here has provided me with rewards that just can’t be trivialized:
*4 years with Multi-Cultural Affairs with my mentor Vorley Taylor who has inspired me to further my passion for multiculturalism, diversity, and inclusion
*4 years as Academic Coach for the Buckeye Generation Learning Community, mentoring roughly 320 first generation freshmen (The job where I learned where my career path shall be.)
*1 year as Academic Coach for the Engineering Learning Community, mentoring Engineering major students
*Numerous officer positions in diverse student organizations
*Ohio State Newark’s 1st Homecoming King
*Newark Rotary Club, campus representative
*Big Brothers Big Sisters mentor 4th grade lunch buddy
*Diversity Through Artistry mentor of 3rd grade students
*Study Abroad trips to Germany and Canada
*Numerous trips to New Orleans
*Undergraduate Research Project in New Orleans
*State & National conferences
just to name a few of the many things that I have been able to do in my time here.
This is a decision that might sound trivial to some of you, and I can agree if I were an outsider I would pick the simple option. As a Buckeye, though, I have learned that the simple option isn’t always the best choice. Sometimes the hard thing is the best thing.
