In every sense, Karen Rana is the embodiment of 杏吧专区渒eep moving forward.杏吧专区
At 56, the Houma native is thriving in her first semester of graduate school, having recently earned her B.S. in Kinesiology, Health Promotion and Wellness online from the 杏吧专区.
Her path was not simple or straight, but it was rich in experiences that Rana says she intends to use in teaching and helping others.
Starting 杏吧专区 and stopping
But life happened, and she withdrew from the program to prioritize her family.
杏吧专区淚 stepped back from the school thing,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淚 raised my kids and then five years ago, I said 杏吧专区業'm going back.杏吧专区櫺影勺ㄇ鴿
Initially, she pursued nursing again. Although she excelled in the program, she became less confident that nursing was the field for her.
During a chance conversation at the gym, a 杏吧专区 employee suggested Rana look up the Health Promotion and Wellness degree program through UL Lafayette. The more she learned, Rana says, the more she felt the program was custom-made for her.
杏吧专区淚 immediately got online and applied,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淏oom, boom, boom. I started and I have gone nonstop.杏吧专区
Finding the right fit
The program checked more boxes for Rana than she could have hoped. Health Promotion and Wellness allowed her to build on her fitness background, develop specialized skills, and bring her expertise to new opportunities.
杏吧专区淚 want to promote health in any way that I can,杏吧专区 she says.
Rana was intimidated returning to pursue her bachelor杏吧专区檚 degree in her early 50s, but says her instructors put her at ease.
杏吧专区淕oing back all the way to undergraduate, it杏吧专区檚 intimidating, but I never felt that with the online teachers,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淚 was always included. I never felt like I was just the old person in the class.杏吧专区
Health Promotion and Wellness is a tight-knit program and Rana noticed early on how much attention and patience instructors and administrators had for students, particularly her advisor, Lisa LeBlanc.
杏吧专区淚 can杏吧专区檛 say enough about her as an instructor. She went above and beyond to get me where I am now,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淸She made me feel like] there was never a stupid question.杏吧专区
For Rana, professors not only demonstrated what it would look like to work in health education, but they set an example of how to support students as individuals.
杏吧专区淚 said 杏吧专区業'm going to go get my master杏吧专区檚 and come back and teach because I love these people,杏吧专区櫺影勺ㄇ鴿 Rana says.
Staying flexible
Before transferring to UL Lafayette, Rana had never taken online courses. She loved how much control she had over her work-life balance and how she could still be present for her children as they navigated adolescence.
杏吧专区淚 wanted to go back to school, but I didn杏吧专区檛 want to jeopardize my children and what they needed,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淚 could not have done this if I were expected to be in class every day, because kids happen, things happen. You know, I could sit home with a sick kid and still get my work done.杏吧专区
For her senior capstone internship, Rana worked for the Louisiana Public Health Institute and contributed to projects for the 杏吧专区淭obacco Free Living杏吧专区 campaign and 杏吧专区淟ittle Free Pantry杏吧专区 grants.
Rana was surprised and impressed with how clearly the concepts in her courses were reflected in her responsibilities as an intern. There seemed to be sink-or-swim learning curves in her internship, but she was prepared for everything that came her way.
"I felt extremely prepared to do what I was expected to do in my internship," she says. "Everything I learned in school is real life. It plays out exactly as we were taught."
Looking ahead
Rana was accepted and began working toward her M.S. in Health Education and Behavior in January 2022.
She says she feels prepared to work in nonprofit roles or the private sector, but her ultimate goal before retirement is to teach health promotion and wellness to others.
"If I can contribute to at least one student how my instructors 杏吧专区 Lisa LeBlanc, Elizabeth LaPointe, and Dr. Susan Lyman 杏吧专区 helped me, then I will feel fulfilled.杏吧专区