Personal Responsibility Essay
Philip Stansberry
GEN/200 - FOUNDATIONS FOR GENERAL EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS
March 3, 2014
DALYNN CAMPBELL

Abstract

My Personal Responsibility Essay is a brief look into my background, major changes in the educational landscape, my reasons for attending college, my motivation, and the obstacles that would hinder me from completing my goal.
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Table of Contents

Table of Contents ....................…………...................................................................................... 2

Personal Responsibility Essay……...................……..…............................................................... 3 References….................................................................................................................................. 6

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Personal Responsibility Essay

My arrival at the University of Phoenix came a few years after my retirement plans ran into a pothole. When I say pothole, I should really say canyon. Though, all things considered, my retirement goals were nothing to write home about.

I was a migrant nuclear worker, which means I worked infrequently with no substantial retirement benefits. This 30 year continuum had me exhausting my savings during the dry times, thus my earnings never amounted to much towards retirement. I lived an unbalanced middle class existence. My plan for retirement was to simply survive until I was able to collect social security, sell my home, move to a country where I could live comfortably off the SSI, die, and go onto heaven for a real retirement.

So what was the pothole that in my perspective became a canyon? Let’s just summarize things by saying I am disabled, unemployed for 4 years, and am approximately in $100,000.00 in debt with a family of four to support, with no employment outlooks in the future. Surviving these obstacles has been the most difficult I have ever encountered. So while I may be a bit advanced in age, I don’t believe my disability, low graduation rates, funding, or poor time management practices are going to be significant obstacles towards my earning a degree. I truly believe I have the support, motivation, and resources to succeed in the online learning environment.

So here I am, currently 52 years old, and in my first year in college at the University of Phoenix. I dropped out of college after a semester when I turned 16 years old. I did everything possible to succeed back then, so there really isn’t a good reason why I should be confident now. I mean, I was younger, smarter, and had little or no responsibilities to add stress and distraction. So what makes this time different? The only thing I can say is that times have changed.

Most of those changes have come to the educational landscape. When I attended school in 1979, the biggest thing changing was the automobile engine. The gasoline crisis sent prices skyrocketing, and many experts predicted vehicular transport would be over by now. Yet here we are, driving everywhere we have to go.

The biggest difference occurring since my earlier attempt at college was not the automobile engine, but the search engine. The internet has made it possible for untold resources to be available by typing in a keyword and clicking a mouse. This new technology places education resources at my fingertips, but the University of Phoenix has made things even easier. Their website has integrated tools designed to help students, including a Library, Center of Writing Excellence, and the Center of Math Excellence. The guides, examples, and tutors available means I can access help 24/7. Teams are also a part of their learning environment, and so if I am having a problem, I can share it among teammates. I have Enrollment Advisors, communities, groups, and even the class instructors, who are much more accessible than they were in 1979. The instructors during my previous attempt at college were only available during class and a few hours during the week. It was a struggle to understand a new concept with so little access to information and help. Once I got behind in 1979, I was screwed.

My motivation to succeed in college is probably different from most students. My kids are learning things I was never taught as a teenager. For example, I never knew Pocahontas and John Smith were not betrothed. Pocahontas had an Indian husband. She was also pregnant during the first Thanksgiving. When I learned that, I had nothing to say. Over the years, I have learned to be more silent. Children are getting smarter. An adult attempting to express what they learned makes them appear dumb.
I am not alone as a baby boomer returning to the educational landscape. “Older adults increasingly represent a larger population in postsecondary education, mostly due to the return of the baby boomer generation, who are currently between 40 and 60 years old (American Association of Community Colleges 2010).” I am not concerned as to why other adults over 50 are returning to school. Attending college gives me the means to at least appear smarter than my kids. Earning good grades can also get me a little respect about the house. If you add to that, I’ve been unemployed for the last 4 years. You would think earning a degree towards getting a job to support my family should be inspirational enough. But I have been blessed to have a few more arrows in my motivational quiver, available thanks to the VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation Program. The VA is not only paying for my tuition and books. They are also giving me a stipend. That extra income goes a long way towards providing motivation. They are saying to me, stay in school, and we’ll make it worth your while, right now.
I have mentioned a few of my personal obstacles towards obtaining an education, but the Sunday Gazette Journal warns, “Attending college can cause headaches, nausea, sleeplessness, irritability and eating disorders (Welle & Graf. 2011).” This was not the best news to hear, especially with considering the disabilities I have that qualified me for the VA’s assistance. These issues place seeds of doubt in my learning landscape, but I still have a tree of hope.
In conclusion, I don’t feel the obstacles can overcome my support circle. The experts were wrong about the world not being able to fuel vehicles. I intend to make the experts wrong again. Through personal experiences, the learning tools, funding, motivation, and sustenance, I believe I have enough in my corner to defeat the odds. My weekly goal is to stay ahead, and never fall behind. If I can maintain that philosophy, I know I can be successful.

References

1 Welle, P. D., & Graf, H. M. (2011). Effective lifestyle habits and coping strategies for stress tolerance among college students. American Journal of Health Education, 42(2), 96-105. Retrieved from http://www.aahperd.org/aahe/publications/ajhe/author-abstracts.cfm
2 American Association of, C. C. (2010). Plus 50 students: Tapping into a growing market. American Association of Community Colleges.