Issue 21 - November 2011

November “Military Family Appreciation Month”

The U.S. Department of Defense has named November “Military Family Appreciation Month.” Since we have a number of learners who are serving in the military or who are a military spouse, we thought we would feature one such story.

William “Bill” Barnett is currently working on his bachelor’s degree in Computer Operations Technology, and he plans to finish next February. Bill is also in the United States Air Force and has been for eighteen years.

How has your family supported you in pursuit of your education and as a service member?

Between my busy schedule at work, school, and volunteering with the local community, coaching, and cub scouts, I stay really busy. However, my wife and two boys know how important it is for me to finish my degree – both personally and professionally. My wife lets me do my homework by tending to anything that is needed to get this goal accomplished. In fact, they are very proud that I will have my degree next year.

What advice do you have for others who are balancing military life and family life?

It is a balancing act to make sure all of your commitments are met, both personally and professionally. What I did was start with one class a term, then went to two classes a term. If I knew I had something coming up, I would mentally prepare for it. Once you get started it is easy; it was just the getting started part that was difficult for me.

Additionally, I do my homework and studying early in the morning or late at night so I do not take away from my family life. Family is the most important thing in the world to me. Without them, I would not have been able to complete this degree or even stayed in the military. So the balance of the family life, education, and professional life is difficult, but not impossible.

Anything else you would like to add?

I have really enjoyed taking classes at Southwestern College. They not only worked with me to ensure I was taking the right classes at the right time, but even with the busy schedule at home, TDYs and deployments through the military, they made it easy for me to attend. The instructors work very well with the military, too.

In the military, education is getting more and more important.  If you want to excel in the military and be marketable in the civilian sector, a degree must be completed. It took me a while to figure that out, but I am so glad I went back to school when I did.

Additionally, my son is a junior in high school and he sees how important education is to me. Now that I am graduating soon, I can talk to him about the importance of a degree – he can do as I do, not as I say, and that is very important to me.

Lastly, I feel a great deal of accomplishment for doing this. In fact, I plan to continue my education through other certificate programs and will even start working on my master’s degree. That was never a thought in my mind until I started taking courses through Southwestern.  So I feel that this experience has made me grow professionally, personally, and educationally, and that is a great feeling.

Meet Our Staff: Lolita Repp

Lolita Repp joined the Southwestern College Professional Studies team in late August and has been very busy since. Lolita serves as our Coordinator of Academic Innovation and Assessment. She focuses on the quality and relevance of our course content, ensuring that we are always providing learners with the best content possible. She is researching new programs and classes that might be a good fit for Southwestern College and our learners.

“This was a newly created position, but a necessary one to ensure we are continually offering innovative and relevant coursework,” said Michael Holmes, Director of Academic Affairs.

Lolita earned her Master of Science in Educational Leadership from Newman University and has worked extensively on curriculum issues in K-12 systems and higher education.