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My Story:
My name is Darrell Arnold and I grew up in a household where we never heard anything about going to college after graduating high school. The only thing ever said from my parents was that me and my brothers & sisters were going to finish high school! My father was a career military man and my mother dropped out of high school before the 10th grade. I have two older sisters and an older brother. None of them attended college after high school.
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Very old Picture of Me Age 3.
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Although I came from a middle class household, no one ever stressed to me the importance of making good grades in high school or the importance of attending college. In fact, I even failed the 9th grade because I did not pay attention in class. Luckily I was able to make up the classes I failed and graduate high school on time!
I started working at the age of 16 and liked having my own money. I worked the last two years I was in high school and decided I would take a year off before trying to attend college. I ended up waiting two years before attempting to go.
I attended college on and off for two years. Because I had suffered in English and Math during high school, I had to take 3 semesters worth of prerequisite classes before I could take college level English and Math classes. This was disheartening because I realized it was going to take me almost 4 years just to get an Associates Degree. In the mean time I got married and started my career in law enforcement. I was content with my life at that point so I decided to drop out of college. I figured I would not need to attend college because I secured employment in my chosen career field.
After working at a small town police department making less than $7.00 per hour and making unwise financial decisions, I started looking into other police departments. I found out quickly that most of them required AS or BS degrees. I was lucky enough to get hired here in Gadsden and my pay nearly doubled. Again, I was content with my life and did not even consider going back to college.
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The Author at Gadsden Police Department - Photo by Tommy Hammonds
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Having two children and aspiring to be able to provide for my family motivated me to reenter college two years ago. Internet and distance learning courses have made it easier for people to attend college.
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The Kids. They were my main motivation for returning to college. I want to provide I better life for them and more importantly set a good example for them to follow. Photo by Darrell Arnold.
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The statistics are overwhelming in regards to children following their parents example of attending and completing college. At the age of 10, my children already understand the importance of going to college and I will do whatever it takes to make sure they get there!
- According to a National Center for Educational Statistics survey completed in 1999, 82% of students whose parents held a bachelor’s degree or higher enrolled in college immediately after high school.
Visit the My Experience Page to see how I am doing now.
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