Celebrating Success: Non-traditional students are redefining college life

Foster Conner

School is not a warzone. Leaving the military can be a struggle when you transition from a structured lifestyle full of long hours and high risks. College is a structured environment in an entirely different way that can be too slow for many nontraditional students

If I could give one piece of advice to nontraditional students like me, it would be to get involved. Many of us have had whole other lives before coming to college and may have responsibilities a traditional student does not have that can make attending college complicated. 

Making connections with fellow students, stepping out of your comfort zone and trying new things will help make navigating a degree all that much easier. If you are a veteran like me, you have already survived the toughest challenge of your life; going to college is easy compared to what we have already faced. Most of all, do not give up. 

Brian Frank

Returning to college as a student at age 43 was challenging in many ways. I can’t speak for other older students, but for me, it was really important to make sure I wasn’t wasting my money or time when I went back to school. I also wanted to meet the responsibilities I had in my family and my job. 

I got my bachelor’s and later master’s degrees by taking classes at a slow and deliberate pace. Doing it on those terms meant that it took me 11 years to get the education credentials I needed to get the job I wanted.

My advice to non-traditional students is to be intentional about each of the different elements of the process. Parts of the journey can be overwhelming, but you can make time for your family and you can perform well at your job. 

Scheduling time when you do work on your courses can help make it less stressful. That process served me well and ultimately helped me get the career I’d wanted for a long time. In the end, it really is worth it, and you’ll be proud of yourself because you added a degree of difficulty to obtaining your degree.

Jacqueline Guana 

Returning to school has been a deeply personal goal, something I placed on my bucket list years ago. I dropped out in the 8th grade and later earned my GED in 2008, but I always knew I wanted more. I made an attempt at college in 2010, but I wasn’t ready then.

After working for the City of Amarillo for the past four years and growing both professionally and personally, I realized I wanted to do something more, something that could allow me to give back. I want to mentor and help others find their path, just like I’ve found mine, and that’s what motivated me to come back to school.

My experience at Amarillo College has been both challenging and rewarding. Those first few weeks were tough; I had a lot to learn and catch up on, but I’ve had amazing teachers who have taken the time to help me understand the material and stay on track. 

Being in school now brings me a sense of joy and accomplishment that I’ve never felt before. I truly enjoy learning, and I’m proud of myself for pushing forward, even when it’s hard. This journey has reminded me that it’s never too late to achieve your goals.

Lance Hooper

Going from Badger to Bobcat has been a learning curve. When you’re a nontraditional student, you have to have a morning ritual. “How badly do you want it?” is the question I asked myself every time I was being shoved out of my comfort zone. You’ve got to “Rocky Balboa” that dream, work through the pain and make it a reality. When most people my age are winding down, I have to remind myself I’m just kick-starting my next paramount.

The battle over the Oxford comma still lives on—you haven’t truly experienced Student Media until you’re debating punctuation rules at 2 a.m. over group chats. Amarillo College wasn’t just a stop on my journey, it was the foundation for a second career. After finding success in my first profession, I realized I wanted something more. I knew I wanted to become a storyteller, a writer and a producer who could communicate with the world through media.

Amarillo College offered an incredible and intimate learning environment that set me up for success. Smaller classes and a hyper-focus on mass media communication allowed me to sharpen my skills in ways I didn’t fully appreciate until later. You don’t realize how profound and intensive AC’s curriculum is until you find yourself in lecture halls of 300-plus students at a larger university. It’s not that larger universities don’t value your learning experience; it’s just that they operate differently, with less time for personal connection. More than 41,000 students attend Texas State. 

Amarillo College will forever be my launching pad, the place where I realized my passion for writing and producing could become a lifelong career. No matter where the road leads from here, I know the foundation I built at AC will carry me forward. If badgers are anything, they are tenacious. Badger or Bobcat, I’ll still be clawing out my next success story.

Diana Martinez

My name is Diana Martinez and I am 45 years old. I graduated from Amarillo College from the Licensed Vocational Nursing program in June 2008. I have worked in the nursing field in different areas. I worked in Occupational nursing at Cargill Meat Solutions in Friona for about nine years. I also worked as a clinic nurse in Hereford for a combined six years, Amarillo Medical Specialist for three years, and as a school nurse with AISD for a year. At each job, I learned different skills in the nursing field.

In 2023, while working with the Amarillo School District, I decided to return to college and finish my degree as a Registered Nurse. I had to take the HESI entrance exam. For this, I was able to get tutoring from the college resource department. This helped me get back into the groove of studying again. I took the HESI entrance exam and missed the nursing program acceptance by one point! This was devastating and discouraging. I prayed to God about what I should do.

Many years ago, I had heard about Allied Health-Nuclear Medicine, and I thought it was an interesting field. I hadn’t thought about this career option until I missed the nursing program. I was able to speak to the Nuclear Medicine Adviser, Tamra Rocsko, and she told me I had all the class requirements to apply for this program. I applied and I was accepted!

I’m currently enrolled in the program and learn a lot every day. Not going to lie, it’s difficult to continue to move forward with all the new technologies in the medical field. I’m also learning to be around this new younger generation. It is never too late to continue your education and make your dreams come true, no matter how old you are.

Amy Presley

After graduating from AC, I planned to transfer to a 4-year university, but my Dad died very suddenly and unexpectedly. My plans were put on hold, and then I entered the workforce. After 20 years, I’m finally returning to school to work on my B.A. in Mass Communication. 

Coming back and teaching in the program I went through has been such a great experience. Seeing students find their passion for broadcasting is both rewarding and fun. I love hearing how they grow on-air over the course of the semester. 

A lot has changed since the last time I was a student. First off, every class I took was in person, and the classes were all 16 weeks back then. Learning how to navigate an asynchronous online format in 8 weeks has been challenging. Having a textbook only available online has been hard for me because I love making handwritten notes and using sticky notes to highlight sections of the book. Figuring out how to take notes online has been hard because I love pens, paper and notebooks. I’m looking forward to this new endeavor. I have wanted to go back to school for over 20 years.

Thankfully, my boss and Amarillo College support this journey. I’m so grateful to work for an employer who values the education of their students, but also the education of their employees. I work in an industry where hands-on experience is more important than a degree, but I can’t wait to finally have both. 

It’s never too late to go back to school! All of these life experiences are an advantage when learning something new. It has been challenging trying to balance life and being a student again, but it’s doable. Meet your professors, be vulnerable, use available resources and you will succeed.