Rosa Morgan, 42, is an In School Suspension Supervisor at Lebanon Middle School in Lebanon, Indiana. She is the winner of the GetEducated.com free $1,000 online college scholarship. Rosa will use the grant toward an online Bachelors of Management at Indiana Wesleyan University.
At ten years old, Morgan moved to America from the Cape Verde Islands, located off the coast of Africa. School was challenging for Morgan, as she was placed in bi-lingual immersion classes. Without any prior experience speaking English, she struggled to keep up with her studies.
Morgan remembers, “I did not know many English words and I did not know many Portuguese words. I had come from an island that was colonized by the Portuguese, so the language in school was Portuguese, but we spoke Creole at home. My island was very poor, so school was not a high priority.”
Now a single mother of four daughters, Morgan is motivated to excel in her studies to provide a bright future for her family. In 2006, she returned to school. In 2008, she graduated with an associate degree from Massasoit Community College in Massachusetts.
Morgan and her daughters recently moved from Massachusetts to Indiana. She believes the mid-west school system will offer more opportunities for her children and a chance for her to develop a balanced work/study lifestyle. Morgan admits, “It is difficult at times, but I know that education is one of the most important things in life, so I am determined to achieve my goals.”
Indiana Wesleyan University, a Christian school, was the perfect choice for Morgan to continue her education. Morgan applies Catholic values in her daily life and welcomes the opportunity to continue nurturing her convictions and beliefs.
The distance learning degree program at IWU is flexible and allows Morgan to adjust her schedule for her daughters. She says, “At any time, one of them could get sick, and I would have trouble going to class. As a single mom with no family around, babysitting is hard to find and costly.”
The online business degree will open doors for Morgan to build a professional career. In the future, she envisions working as a College Advisor for incoming freshman students. It is Morgan’s dream to show her daughters the importance of school through her own achievements.
“My goal is to prove to my children that when people push you down, push up,” says Morgan. “I will always encourage my daughters to dream big and pursue a college degree after graduating high school, even if they take few classes.”
GetEducated.com will continue to offer free online college scholarships and grants to distance learning students in the spring and fall. The deadlines for these scholarship awards are March 15 and October 15.
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