A Student Success Story

By Martha Baily, Social Science

I had a student take Asian Philosophy last spring. It was the first college class she had attempted in the US. She is from Taiwan, married an American, has lived in the US for a number of years and has three children in K-12. But she was ready for moving into a new career. The class was an exercise in exploration for her.

We developed a friendship after the class, and I've been able to counsel and encourage her as she has explored her options. She has decided to become a Chinese language teacher for middle and high school, and is now pursuing her education in earnest. She plans to do pre-reqs at Clackamas and then go on for a teaching degree. This from a very tentative student, who wasn't completely confident in her English skills, who was denied college at a younger age because her family could not afford it: she had to take practical training to get a job. But I expect she will, in a few years, be in a classroom sharing her language and culture with students, and encouraging them in their learning.