Foundation: Alumni Story - Marie Deans

Marie Deans

In October 2005, I was laid off from my job at VF Jeanswear, Inc. The company decided to send everything overseas.  I was a supervisor and I had been with the company for thirty-one years.  The employees were given an opportunity to take advantage of this program called the Federal Trade Adjustment Assistance funding.  At my age of fifty years old, I did not know if I wanted to look for another job or take advantage of this program and go back to school.  I was not sure that I could handle going back to school at that age but I decided that I would try it.

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I registered at Wilson Technical Community College, now called Wilson Community College, in December 2005 for classes scheduled for the 2006 spring semester in Accounting.  The first couple of weeks in class were a challenge for me.  I thought that I had made the wrong decision by going back to school.  The math problems looked like things that I could have never figured out, and in English I had to write a lot of papers that had to be two to three pages long.  One paper had to be ten pages long.  I really did not like to write papers.  In reading, I had to read a book and then write a report on what I thought about the book.  Everything seemed like there was a lot more involved than it was when I was in high school.  I continued on with my classes that semester and I did really well in them.  When I got my grades in the mail, I was really proud of myself for making good grades.  I continued to make good grades throughout the other semesters that I have taken.  I passed all my classes with A’s, B’s, and one C.  I was so disappointed when I got that C, but it was my fault because I did not study for that class like I did for the other classes.

 In May 2007, I was asked to be a marshal for the graduating class.  You had to have a 3.5 GPA to be a marshal.  I was really honored that they asked me to participate in this event.  I am also a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Society.  This was a real surprise for me because I did not think that I would do that good to be in an honor society.

I was in school for two and a half years.  It was a challenge for me but I do not think that I would have made it without all my supporters that I had standing behind me.  They kept telling me that you can do it and hang in there that it will be worth it all in the end.  I hope that it will be but with the economy like it is right now, I do not know if there will be any jobs available. 

I have given up a lot that I have wanted to do in order to get this degree.  It has been worth it because I made the dean’s list just about every semester.  I guess the saying is right that you never get to old to learn anything.

I graduated in May 2008 with a degree in Accounting.  I can hardly believe it and I can say that I really did accomplish something that I thought would never happen at my age.

Thank you for all my family, my friends, and my teachers that supported me throughout this accomplishment.

Marie Deans