Not Meant for College

Amanda Simmons started her college career at a four-year college, but only three weeks into the semester found that she had been removed from the class rolls and locked out of her dorm because her student loan had not been approved. She sought assistance to remain in college but after several weeks was finally told by an employee that she should just give up – maybe "she wasn’t meant for college". She tried semester after semester to return, but each time she was met with new challenges and she began to accept those harsh words – maybe she wasn’t meant for college – and eventually she gave up.

Over the years she became angry at herself for not trying harder in high school. She became bitter about her circumstances and despaired as she saw the world pass her by. After years of feeling dejected, her husband encouraged her to try again and she found herself at Trident Tech. Even with family and work obligations, she excelled. She became an active member of Phi Theta Kappa and was recently honored as a Distinguished Chapter Member at the PTK convention in Orlando, Fla.

“Before coming to Trident Technical College, I almost let my obstacles drag me down. I almost gave up,” she said. “It wasn’t until I was encouraged to try again that I decided to turn my previous hurdles into a pedestal to lift me up. Every time I was exhausted and didn’t know if I could go on, I would remember those horrible words that were spoken to me years before, and push myself to prove that I am, indeed, meant for college.”

On Friday, May 2, at TTC's 50th commencement ceremony, Amanda had the opportunity to tell more than 750 graduates and thousands of guests her story of perseverance. Through an audition process, student organization presidents selected Amanda and her classmate, Harinath Mookaparambil to represent the class of 2014 with their personal reflection remarks.

Congratulations Amanda, looks like you ARE meant for college!

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