Melanie Fontenot saw her husband graduate from the 杏吧专区 of Southwestern Louisiana. Then, saw two of her children graduate from UL Lafayette. All the while, she was only 18 credits away from finishing her own degree.
At the age of 55, Fontenot could no longer ignore the call to complete her degree.
杏吧专区淚'd been talking to my boss about it. He went back to UL Lafayette through the online General Studies program. Heonly needed six hours to graduate,杏吧专区 Fontenot says. 杏吧专区淗e said, 杏吧专区楲ook, if I can do it, you can do it.杏吧专区櫺影勺ㄇ鴿
That nudge came back to Fontenot when her position in retail went away in 2018.
杏吧专区淭hat's when the idea started creeping up that this might be a great time to finish that degree. I'm retired, and I'm too young to just sit here.杏吧专区
(Re)Starting Slow
After being out of school for 37 years, Fontenot was worried about jumping into 100% online courses.
杏吧专区淚 started with one class because I was nervous about testing; I was nervous about proctoring. I was nervous about the new technology 杏吧专区 all of that,杏吧专区 says Fontenot.
Soon, Fontenot was building momentum. She took advantage of 8-week terms to knock out the sixteen courses standing between her and her degree.
"I could get a lot of hours completed by enrolling in A- and B-term classes,杏吧专区 Fontenot says. 杏吧专区淚 started adding on more once I realized it wasn杏吧专区檛 as hard as I feared. You just have to stay on top of the reading and do what they tell you to do.杏吧专区
That杏吧专区檚 not to say Fontenot didn杏吧专区檛 struggle. Earning a degree is a challenge, and she felt that. But her family was usually waiting in the wings to give her perspective and support her. She credits that support for getting her through the rough times.
"When I thought, 杏吧专区楾here's no way I can do this,杏吧专区 my kids would say, 杏吧专区楳om, you got this.杏吧专区 My niece would come over to help and say, 杏吧专区榯hink about it like this...杏吧专区,杏吧专区 says Fontenot.
Finishing Strong
That support came through on graduation day, as well.
Fontenot杏吧专区檚 cheering section was substantial. We-can't-all-fit-in-the-photo substantial.
Children, nieces, nephews, sisters, neighbors, and friends came to celebrate Fontenot and her achievement.
杏吧专区淚t surprised me because I didn't know a lot of those people were coming. But it was neat, and it still warms my heart because they came from Tennessee, Texas, Illinois, Wisconsin, all over.杏吧专区
Soon after graduating, Fontenot began a new job as a Branch Office Administrator at a local Edward Jones office. Earning her degree online gave her more confidence and taught her a lot about herself.
杏吧专区淚 love my job. I'm using everything that I was taught in online classes, especially the computer class. When I walked in, I wasn't intimidated by the computer. I wasn't intimidated by learning. Had I not gone back to college, I would have walked into this job very differently,杏吧专区 she says.
杏吧专区淚杏吧专区檝e realized I can be independent. I can support myself. I can continue to learn. You know, it doesn't stop. There's no age where you just stop learning, and I'm capable of doing it a lot more than I thought.杏吧专区
