I had moved into Koonce Hall with a friend, because I thought I would be best to know the person I would be living with for at least a year.   As the semester went on, I enjoyed my college career and I never knew KSU was such a “Party School”.  I went to parties every weekend but I was a student first, going to all of my classes, doing assignments, and helping some of my student-athletes that were in my Co-Ed dorm and some were in my classes.  I had a break every day for Young & the Restless Soap Opera (my grandmother got me into watching) for lunch then back to classes for the rest of the day.  At some times I would have to go to the registrar’s office or some Professors’ office hours for some questions, but other than that I usually had my evening to myself for studying, writing papers and completing some projects.  But the weekend was mine and I did everything a college student does in college, drinking, going to parties and having unprotected sex.

Now, the gentleman (this is what I am going to call him for the rest of this paper) that I was having unprotected sex with, was not a KSU student however, he was always on campus because his fellow fraternity brother, was not a student of KSU but, was also always on campus.  We had been high school sweethearts for most of high school and into to my freshman year in college. He had graduated from high school 2 (two) years before myself and had his own experiences as a college student and had been sent back with unacceptable grades for him to continue with his scholarship to play basketball.  He was one of the top recruits but he didn’t have the ACT score or grades to continue because of Proposition 48 (Prop 48). 

“Adopted in 1986 to raise academic standards for athletes, Prop 48 required that a high school senior receiving an athletic scholarship to Division I school must have at least 2.0 grade point average (gpa) in 12 core classes, minimum 700 on SAT and 15 on the ACT in order to be eligible to practice or compete in a sport as a freshman.” Marchiano, Sam TEST ON TRAIL: NCAA’s Academic Requirements Might Be Too Difficult for Some – Los Angeles Times, August 31, 1989.  He had to go to a Junior College in Florida and nevertheless, he wasn’t in school come my freshman college year.  Thus, we were like a married couple always around each other of course like I said before having unprotected sex. 

So, what happened next, you guessed it, I got pregnant and I had to tell my mother, whom did not like this gentleman, that I would be withdrawing from school fall semester, but I always wanted to go back to school to get my degree eventually.  I had to tell my mother after my award presentation of having excellent grades for my 1st semester of college. As you can expect she was disappointed and furious that I wouldn’t be going back to KSU. When I asked to come home when the 2nd semester was completed. She obviously said “NO, since I wanted to act like an adult, go be an adult.”

In comes, two of my mother’s sisters that lived in Columbus, Ohio and gave me my new start because I sure couldn’t go home to my mother or go back to Warren as a pregnant unwed mother. I eventually gave birth to my son and got my 1st apartment in Reynoldsburg.  Adulting is hard and with no help from the gentleman, I had to put my tail between my legs and go home.  My mother is more willing to help because I did have her 1st Grandson/Grandchild. 

We moved to my mother’s home which still had my younger brother and sister 8 (eight) and nine (9) years younger than myself respectively along with our many different foster brothers (which were different any day of the month).  I had been looking into marketable skilled trades (mother asked everyone coming to our house as friend or girl/boyfriends). I had to find a trade or vocational trade program that I would be able to provide for my family.  My mother had mentioned the Surgical Technology Program at Choffin and decided to take a chance and research the career opportunity on the Bureau of Labor Statistics for job growth.  The number were solid so put in my application and got on the waiting list which was the following school year. I didn’t want to just be seating waiting (I don’t wait on anyone but Jesus). When I went to the Welfare office (called Job and Family Services now) to their PIC department now known as Ohio Means Jobs and presented to them that because I had to be on the waiting list would they be willing to pay for my second career pick of Phlebotomy.

Both of my career paths were 9 (nine) and 10 (ten) month course and they never approve 2 different programs for one individual.  I tried anyway and because I asked and took a shot which gave me a 50% chance in getting educated, rather than not asking where I had a 100% of not being educated, they approved the request to pay for Physician Office Laboratory Technician (POLT) and Surgical Technology (ST).