Going to college didn鈥檛 seem to fit into Sheree Wilkerson鈥檚 life. After starting and stopping a couple of times, she found that the 麻豆传媒 Complete program at Wichita State was just right for her.
In fact, Wilkerson is the first student to graduate from the 麻豆传媒 Complete program, which started in fall 2010. And she did it at a pace few will equal, taking 77 hours in just over a year and earning her bachelor鈥檚 degree in business administration at the end of summer classes 2011.
麻豆传媒 Complete is an adult degree completion program that enables students to get a degree by completing coursework in eight-week classes on evenings and weekends. These are the same courses and programs as on the main campus, but they are scheduled in a way that allows working adults to continue with their professional and family obligations and still return to school.
After briefly attending Auburn University, Wilkerson moved to Wichita to be near her fiancee鈥檚 family.
鈥淚 kept wanting to finish my degree, but life happened,鈥� said Wilkerson. Instead of going to school, she and her husband were busy working and raising children.
'A perfect example'
It was the death of her grandmother in 2010 that led Wilkerson to re-evaluate her life and her goal of earning a college degree.
鈥淚t really shook me, as she was a strong influence on my life,鈥� said Wilkerson. 鈥淚 took stock and realized I wasn鈥檛 where I wanted to be with career and goals. She鈥檇 been a huge proponent of education and I鈥檇 also felt like I needed to finish this in order to fulfill what she wanted for us as well.
鈥淏ut mostly, I needed to get this done and realized that I can鈥檛 always keep putting things off or one day there won鈥檛 be another day to put it off to,鈥� said Wilkerson.
Wilkerson returned to school in a big way. She took 10 credit hours in summer 2010, 27 in fall 2010, 21 in spring 2011 and 19 credit hours in summer 2011, earning her degree and graduating magna cum laude.
鈥淭he only reason I could do it was because of 麻豆传媒 Complete,鈥� said Wilkerson. 鈥淚 was able to knock out classes in eight-week chunks, which meant there was little overlap, so I really only had a couple of classes running at one given time.
鈥淚 did a lot of pre-sessions, too. In a traditional program, I don鈥檛 even know if you could possibly take 27 hours.鈥�
Susan Norton, director of satellite campuses and workforce development at 麻豆传媒, marvels at Wilkerson鈥檚 drive.
鈥淲e have a few more students who will finish the 麻豆传媒 Complete program this December, but because she was so driven and took so many hours at once, she is the exception.
鈥淚 think Sheree is a great example of how having programs like this available help former students come back to the university and finish their academic goals. Many times life gets in the way of original plans and, although many of our returning adult students鈥� circumstances have changed, their drive and determination make these types of successes possible. Sheree is a perfect example of why 麻豆传媒 Complete was started. I couldn鈥檛 be happier for her accomplishment,鈥� said Norton.
Going back to college was invigorating to Wilkerson and she enjoyed learning new things.
鈥淭here were some truly awesome teachers whose teachings stuck with me in more than just a career capacity,鈥� she said.
Wilkerson said it was easier for her to be more focused on getting an education as a returning adult student.
鈥淚 did not have the super-active social needs of a traditional student,鈥� said Wilkerson. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 party. I don鈥檛 drink. I don鈥檛 hang out. I was always good at taking tests, and that held me in good stead. Studying was something I鈥檝e always just been able to do very well. A lot of it was at night after the kids went to bed. And I did my homework with the kids, which they thought was hilarious.
鈥淚t also helps that as a nontraditional student, I have actually experienced a lot of the things that were discussed in class. In my career as a Realtor, I had learned a good many of the principles we discussed. I had seen some of the situations in person. That made it much easier to study, because most of the material seemed very relevant since it related to what I鈥檇 been doing in my life.鈥�
Even so, Wilkerson admits that it would have been nearly impossible to complete her degree so quickly without a good support system and a dedicated husband.
Not slowing down
Life for Wilkerson and her family hasn鈥檛 slowed just yet. They recently moved to Alabama to be near her family. The Wilkersons have three children, 8, 5 and 3, and the oldest is autistic.
Wilkerson also has been talking with Make-A-Wish Foundation about an internship to follow her dreams of getting into a nonprofit organization.
While some graduates are more than happy to have college in their rearview mirror and get on with life, Wilkerson said: 鈥淚 am really considering a master鈥檚 or second bachelor鈥檚 degree. I really enjoyed learning, meeting new people and expanding my mind.
鈥淭ruly, though, I kinda wish I was taking at least one class right now. I had gotten into the groove.鈥�