Empire State College, the School Where you Design Your own Degree Program!

This is where I got my degree. I attended orientation at Empire State College in Syracuse, NY just 5 days before my late husband passed away. I sat at a long table with several others who were also soon to be students when the woman in charge asked us to share what we had been doing for the past months. I dreaded sharing what I had been doing because it entailed caring for my late husband who was terminally ill with a brain tumor. I came very close to getting up and running out the door. But I didn't...I stayed. I shared that I, with the help of Hospice, had been caring for my very sick husband. Then I cried all the way home. I had to stop at the pharmacy for medicine for John and cried all the time I was waiting. The poor pharmacist came over and asked if I was alright. I'm sure that he knew about John because I had been buying medication for John for months.

Empire State College is part of the State University of New York. There are several branches in other cities in New York, the main branch is in Saratoga. This university has grown by leaps and bounds since I graduated as I knew they would. Why have they grown so much? What makes this college so special? Let me tell you why.

Empire State College is geared for the adult student. They give their students credit for life experience. I earned 3 credits for painting. I took pictures of paintings that I had done, wrote an essay about the classes I had taken and submitted it. They awarded me 3 credits. I did the same for poetry. I wrote an essay, submitted around 20 of my poems, and was awarded 2 college credits. They also accepted most of the credits from classes that I had taken in the past. I know that most colleges do this, but I attended Utica School of Commerce, a business school that I attended years earlier, and they accepted many of the classes that I had taken.

My late husband, John passed away in June and I started school in October. I didn't have to attend classes each day. Instead I worked with a professor as my counselor and she helped me enroll in classes that met one evening every 2 weeks. I received my assignments, did the required reading, wrote a paper or two (each class is different) and went back to class and submitted them, listened and learned, received another assignment, and performed the necessary tasks, then went back to school 2 weeks later. I also cross registered at a school near to my home and took classes that they offered and I wanted.

One class I took was called "Journalling." I had to take a 2 or 3 day trip by myself. It didn't matter where I went as long as I went alone. I asked my mom and dad to watch Allie and Matt, my 6 and 8 year old children, and left, driving up route 20 west across the State. (I later found out that this highway goes all the way across the country) I stopped at the Montezuma Wildlife Rescue Center, sketched a picture of a great blue heron, visited the educational building, and moved on the Seneca Falls where I visited the Women's Rights Convention Center. I also stopped and enjoyed a petting zoo, then went on to Lake Erie where I strolled around the Lake and village and spent the next two nights. I settled in and worked on my sketch, finishing it with colored pencils.

My trip home a day later wasn't so enjoyable. My mini van overheated when driving up and down the hills on Route 20 on my way home. A kind stranger saved me and took me to get water to fill the radiator so I could get home. The next day I took my vehicle to the shop where I bought it only to find that I needed a new transmission. They did replace it for me because it was still under warranty. And yes, I shared my experiences with my class. We each read our stories about our trip and I found that one classmate went to the Mardi Gras! Another went off to a cabin in the Adirondaks. We each shared our experience of our trip by ourselves.

Empire State College is one school where you can design your own degree program. I didn't have to take any classes that I didn't want to take, although they do require each student to take at least one math and science class. I chose Human Services as my major and took classes that interested me, not classes that were absolutely required by the University! I moved to Florida and continued to take classes by mail. They didn't have online classes at that time, so I finished my degree by mail, reading and writing papers. This is where most of my writing experience comes from. I earned my Bachelors degree in 2001. If you are interested in checking into Empire State College, I've included the link to their website underneath the photo above. It is a wonderful school, entirely geared for the adult student who has life experience. It changed my life and it will yours too!