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College Success Stories
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Driving a Distance for an Education Different as they are, Kathleen Fisher, Norm Emler, and Angela Brown have one thing in common, traveling to York Technical College for their education. Every morning Fisher drives 45 miles from Gaffney, Emler 52 from Union, and Brown 38 from Sharon. Every afternoon, they return home.
Fisher, Emler, and Brown are motivated. York Technical College may be “a fer piece from home,” but the learning experiences more than make up for the mileage and time on the road. |
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Copyright 1995-2009 |
“I
leave the house every day around 6:20 in the morning,” Fisher says.
She drops her dog off at her mother’s home in Blacksburg and heads
down Route 5 to Rock Hill. Although she has two jobs, one as a
computer lab assistant at York Tech and the other as a clerk at a
pottery barn in Gaffney, Fisher is taking twelve hours. “It’s
hard, but I’m keeping up.” She is majoring in Computer
Programming. She does not mind the drive, for she thinks about her
homework and listens to a talk show.
Emler
also enjoys his trips through the country to York Tech. “I love
listening to the birds and looking at the fields and woods.” A
native of Texas, Emler came to South Carolina after he left the
Marines. “Greenville Tech would have been much closer,” he adds,
his hazel eyes twinkling, “but I’ve been working in Rock Hill, and I
know the area.” Receiving a certificate in Industrial Electricity
will prepare him for securing the master electrician’s license, a
necessity for having his own business. “York Tech is a good school,
and whoever puts the courses together knows exactly what students
need to succeed in their jobs.” After classes, Emler goes to the
library or to the student center where he studies until late
afternoon.
Brown
has lived in Sharon all of her life. “I’m a caretaker just like my
mother, but she never had the opportunity to get an education. I
do, and I am determined. I promised my mom, when she was dying,
that I would go back to school.” Brown had to drop out of school
when she was expecting her first child. A few years later, she
traveled to Clover to complete her GED. Then, she had a second
baby. Concentrating in Surgical Technology at York Tech, Brown
says, “I long for the time when I can hand those instruments to the
surgeons and wheel patients back to their rooms.” She appreciates
all of the support and help which teachers, staff, and other
students have given to her along the way, especially Jason Desch who
always said, “You can do it.”