By Philip Winterstein, Staff Reporter.
Hundreds of students pledged to finish what they’ve started during a pledge drive of sorts the week of Nov. 17.
As part of the Community College Completion Corps week, a Career Exploration panel convened Nov. 19 in the Lecture Theater. A panel of four Delta graduates — Carl Ruth, Celina Eckerlie, Amy McPike and Charles Sledge – discussed how they made it through school, how they got to where they are now, and what students could learn from their experiences.
“I did not meet the requirements to graduate from high school and I didn’t score the appropriate score on my ACT,” said Ruth. “So, I said to myself ‘since I don’t have the study skills and I haven’t prepared myself, appropriately, I am going to attend Delta College to make my objective to get a degree from Western Michigan University’…I wanted to get my Teacher’s Certificate and come back to the Saginaw school system and try to encourage students not to do the same as me.”
Ruth graduated from Delta College in 1971, Western Michigan University in 1975 and from Central Michigan University in 1979 and has been a Saginaw County Commissioner for since 2000.
Eckerlie completed her Associate’s Degree at Delta College. In 2011, she completed her undergraduate program in Social Work at SVSU.
“I found that the more I worked within the community, the happier I got,” Eckerlie said. “Now, I mainly work with abused and neglected children. I also do individual and family counseling as well as advocacy through the courts. I feel blessed to be doing something that I love to do every day.”
Amy McPike was inducted as one of Delta College’s Possible Dream students in the sixth grade. McPike continued as a dual-enrolled student in high school and completed her freshman year at Delta before transferring to Central Michigan to get her Bachelor’s Degree in Interpersonal Public Communication. McPike now works in the Student and Civic Engagement offices at Delta College.
“I wanted to make a career out of helping other students through similar circumstances as mine,” McPike said. “Delta opened up an opportunity for a little girl from Pinconning, whose parents didn’t have a lot of money. I wanted give a chance to other students and help them open doors.”
Charles Sledge is a member of Phi Theta Kappa, a graduate of the Student Leadership Academy, and is former vice president of Students Empowering Opportunities. Sledge graduated from Delta College in the Spring semester of 2013 with an Associate’s Degree in Arts. Currently, he is enrolled in Delta College’s 3+1 Program with Delta and Ferris State University, and will receive his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice in the Spring of 2015.
“Education is key,” Sledge explained. “Don’t just be a ‘regular student’; find something you can get involved in and be a voice in your community. I want to be a voice for the voiceless child. I represent myself and my family better because of my education and how it helped me find my voice. It took me 46 years to find my voice, but I found it.”
Malorie Bovee, a student studying Elementary Education, said the event was helpful.
“I think everyone got something out of [the panel],” Bovee said. “A lot of the students can relate to their issues.”
