The family that studies together stays together
西点高中高三学生，现任草榴社区州立大学双招生学生， 蒂亚·杜克（Tia Duke）也有一些建议要补充，尽管她的意思并不完全相同 “听你父母的话，”蒂亚坐在妈妈旁边说 在她位于鲍德温的家的客厅里，她的父亲“，并愿意向他们寻求帮助.”
的确，这样的建议对任何一个充满希望的大学生来说都是合理的，但对蒂亚来说，这句话 transcend normal, well-meaning encouragement. Her parents, James and Sandra Lenz, 不仅是她一路走来的主要支持者，还有她的同学们. “我们很幸运，”詹姆斯在回忆他现在的大学经历时说 a?family affair. 因为草榴社区州立大学就在这条路上，我们所有的目标 are becoming very real.”
这个家庭之旅始于詹姆斯，他是一名服役16年的退伍军人. He was the 家里第一个被草榴社区州立大学录取的人，主要是被这所大学的众多学生所吸引 programs that rank well both nationally and statewide. “I spent a lot of time overseas,” he says of his younger days in the military. “I thought I hated school, but I love Wallace.”?
在早期的日子里，詹姆斯在大学招生的新世界里航行 help of Mr. Brett Messersmith. Now, with two semesters of welding under his belt, 詹姆斯也完成了他在汽车系的第五个学期 oversight of Mr. Adam Frazier. But with the prospect of the three?family?members completing 在获得学位的同时，詹姆斯决定继续他的学业，并计划继续深造 eventually getting his pilot’s license, too.
詹姆斯来到草榴社区州立大学后不久，与他结婚五年的妻子桑德拉， decided she’d also give college a try. “I was so nervous my first day, as the Bailey Building came into view,” Sandra recalls. “I was scared, but I stuck with it, and I knew that I was going to be okay after that.” While James helped Sandra stay calm 由于受到激励，这对夫妇很快就有机会提供支持和实践 鼓励Tia，她是2020年秋季入学的双招生学生. “It became a trickle-down effect,” James says. “And now, if one of us is struggling then 我们中的另一个人可以说，‘我知道你在经历什么’，而且确实知道你在经历什么 he or she is talking about.”
在大学期间，这种深切的同理心帮助在家庭中形成了一种持久的纽带， 这是一种关系，可以帮助每个人承担责任，并给予必要的激励，让他们自信地冲锋 through research essays and finals weeks. “It’s easy to help each other out,” Sandra “在James的帮助下，我能够帮助Tia尽早适应.”?
Even the best of dreams is often hard-won. The challenges of families through the COVID-19 pandemic are well noted and multi-faceted. There is not only the balance 大学课程，还有工作和养家糊口的责任. 詹姆斯和桑德拉对蒂亚来说身兼父母、知己、导师和朋友的多重角色 还有他们的其他孩子，包括他们最小的女儿蕾拉，他们的儿子卡梅伦， 还有大女儿KC，他们希望她也能很快入读草榴社区大学.?
每个家庭成员都有不同的学位计划，这也是一个挑战 正如詹姆斯所说，他不得不“在完成课程和帮助他人之间切换” each other study for other classes.” While James has been mostly in-person since the 在大流行开始时，桑德拉在面对面和虚拟之间平衡了她的时间 learning; Tia, on the other hand, had to get acclimated to full virtual learning during her first dual-enrollment semester.?
詹姆斯和蒂亚一致认为，大流行造成的最大挑战是延迟 蒂亚获得了一整年的校内亲自指导的经历. Now that 课堂已经恢复，他希望这家人能加深他们的集体感情 经验，“我期待着有一天，我们都可以有同样的休息时间 我们的日常课程，我们可以坐下来一起吃午饭在校园里.”
蒂亚将于5月从西点高中毕业，并计划成为一名全日制学生 in Fall of 2021. 自从她发现了双录取的机会，她就这么做了 now set her eyes on the nursing program at Wallace. “I’m able to get a head start on my career in high school but I am able to do it as part of a closely-knit support system.”
桑德拉也认为，正是这种支持体系让这个家庭变得更加强大. A confessed 主修手工艺的桑德拉已经完成了第三学期的学业，她正在攻读图形学学位 design, under the tutelage of Mr. Adrian Scott, who, she has noticed, is “very in-tune with his students.” Sandra hopes the graphic design program can help lead her to a dream of starting her own creative business. Though her husband and daughter have 不同的职业规划，桑德拉说得很清楚，“我们每个人都有相同的最终目标：我们 want to push each other to graduate.”?
詹姆斯和桑德拉意识到和女儿一起上大学的经历 给他们带来了智慧，这些智慧适用于所有家庭和 in almost any chapter of life’s journey. James offers two-fold advice for any future 丈夫和妻子，父母和孩子，大学支持团队，“你必须沟通，” 他若有所思地说：“但你也得让你的家人觉得有趣.” 几乎就在这时，三个人对着对方笑了笑，很快就达成了谅解 laughter.?
也许詹姆斯，桑德拉和蒂亚，并没有设定任何神话世界的期望 大多数家庭成员在草榴社区州立大学一个学期入学的记录，但是 他们的经历对他们的家庭产生了深刻而持久的影响. “The two of us and Sandra 上大学是为了向我们的孩子证明你可以追随自己的梦想 succeed in life if you work hard,” Sandra says. And while there is certainly the sheer 毕业的兴奋，更重要的是获得大学学位的成就感 in the only way they could imagine—together as a team.
这是4月份一系列重点报道和活动中的第一个 Wallace State celebrates national Community College Month. Visit www.wscccalumni.org/ccmonth21 for more information.
Registration for Summer Semester also starts this month. Priority registration begins April 13.? 夏季学期从5月26日开始，为期10周，另外两个为期5周 在汉斯维尔和奥内昂塔的校园里提供在线课程，白天，晚上 and weekends. For more information about Wallace State, visit www.55jiaju.com.