What aspect of your education are you most thankful for? by LaShaonda

What aspect of your education are you most thankful for? by LaShaonda - November 2020 Scholarship Essay

My path to graduating with a post-secondary degree has not been conventional or easy, and I am grateful for it. Most students the dream is to graduate from high school and go to the college of their choice. College was not a dream that I knew that I could even dream, let alone obtain. I am not from an affluent family, so the prospect of going to college was not for people like me. I am the product of a single parent high school in an impoverished area. There were no college funds for me. I attended a high school that did not send many students to college, and while I was in the top five percent of my graduating class, this was not present to me as an option. I never went on tours of schools. I didn't have a list of my top choices.
Fortunately, I was able to enroll in a local community college after high school. My college experience was not that of others in my age group, but I didn't mind. I was happy to be in college, any college. That bliss didn't last as long as my financial aid quickly ran out. My lack of funds prompted me to join the US Army. It offered me the ability to fight for my country and go to college with the help of the G.I. Bill. During my time in the military, I was able to reach one of my milestones. I obtain an associate degree in Electronics Technology. If the story ended there, that would be good enough, but there's more.
After leaving the military, I decided that I wanted to go for my bachelor's degree. No one in my immediate family has ever gone to college, let alone graduate with a bachelor's degree. Like the rest of my educational career, this path was not a straight shot. Between military deployments, children, moving abroad, and transferring to different universities searching for one that fit my life, my education hit its fair share of roadblocks.
With persistence, I am happy to say that I am in four classes to complete my bachelor's degree. I am so thankful for the journey. Because my path to graduation was a tough one, I appreciate it more. Some people are not lucky enough to get a degree, let alone two. If the path were an easy one, it might have turned out differently and not for the better. The journey to getting my degree has taken me all across the world and has taught me so many tough lessons along the way. Anything worth getting is worth fighting for, and I have fought very hard for this. For that, I am thankful.