Aimee Backus is back in college after taking a few years off to join the National Guard and be an Emergency Medical Technician.
Now, in her mid-twenties, she is handling multiple roles; she is a first-time mom, a single mom and a returning college freshman. When we caught up with Aimee she had just completed her last final of the semester. It should be noted that she took a full load of 13 credits and has earned an A in each of her classes. What makes her story all the more extraordinary is the fact that she had a baby four weeks into the semester.
We spoke to Dr. Alisa Cooper, English and Journalism faculty at GCC, who said, “Aimee started the semester when she was 37 weeks into her pregnancy. During the semester the baby was born and Aimee aced the class. No late assignments, no favors requested, no excuses, she just did it on her own. That’s persistence!”
“It was a crazy time,” acknowledged Aimee. “I was in labor and was trying to take a Chemistry Exam at the same time. The only reason I couldn’t complete it was because I left my calculator at home. I contacted my instructor and she graciously gave me an extension.”
She commented that her instructors were great, so welcoming and very understanding, especially Dr Alisa Cooper and Ericka Hopson.
Originally from Arizona, Aimee recently moved from Texas to be close to family. She was determined to go back to school and because of the great things she heard about GCC, she decided to become a Gaucho. She worked with the GCC Veterans Services Center to get enrolled. “I came in a week before the semester started and the Veterans staff got me all set up. They were fantastic!” Commented Aimee.
She originally enrolled in pre-nursing but quickly decided to shift her focus to biology. Aimee claimed, “That's the beauty of GCC. You can explore so many course offerings and find your passion. College should be an adventure and GCC allows you to try so many options. I know I would not have had the opportunity to do it if I went to a university, it would be too expensive. GCC is so affordable, which gives you so much freedom.”
She also said this of GCC. “You don’t have to have it all figured out when you get here. GCC will help you find your direction.”
When asked about her decision to return to college she said that her goal is to get an education so she can get a job that she loves and that will provide for herself and her son. She is excited about all the job prospects in the biology field. She admitted that it was not an easy decision to go back to college. She summed it up this way, “A person can always come up a reason not to go to school. The important thing is to make the commitment and try. For me, my son is why I wanted to go back.”
Aimee humbly feels that that what she is doing is not all that special, however she did make one final comment. “If I can inspire at least one single mom to go back to school, I would be so happy with that.”