The Mother Load

Like any other student in Introduction to Computers, Eastern Michigan University’s Falon Johnson is expected to meet the requirements her instructor has set. However, this may not apply to Elijah Hansle, Johnson’s 17-month-old son, who waits patiently beside his mother as she finishes her exam. The rest of the class members’ attention is temporarily diverted from their exams to Elijah and his mother. The students slowly-mouth the words, “he is so cute,” as a look of affection is then shared from one classmate to another.

“My classmates and teacher were distracted because they were drawn to him. They thought he was so cute,” said Johnson. The 21-year old senior is among many students who are continuing their education and professional careers, all while fulfilling the responsibilities and duties that accompany motherhood.

According to Custodial Mothers and Fathers and Their Child Support, a 2007 report released by the U.S. Census Bureau, there are approximately 13.7 million single parents in the United States today, and those parents are responsible for raising 21.8 million children (approximately 26 percent of children under 21 in the U.S. today).

“When I found out I was pregnant with my daughter Jordyn, I was 16-years old. During my pregnancy I heard it all,” “your going to be on welfare, your going to drop out of school, you’re never going to make any more then what minimum wage has to offer, and after hearing those words I just felt obligated to silence the people who doubted me,” says Shenoby Metcalf, who has now graduated from college with a degree in physical therapy.

“To some its motivation, if they weren’t serious about life before the baby, a child makes you want to succeed so that your child can have what you didn’t,” said Johnson.

For many of today’s single parents who happen to be enrolled as a full-time or part-time college students that want and need to succeed for them and for their children is often unattainable. Public universities such as EMU, where Johnson is a full-time student, often lack the resources to assist the attempts of students like her to complete their education at their expected graduation date.

“It’s tough for single moms, because, for instance, at Washtenaw Community College, their Women’s Resource Center is set up totally different, where they can get bus tokens and they can give more money for scholarships. Whereas we aren’t necessarily financially sound enough to do that, we don’t have that type of budget,” says Jessica Klein, the Women’s Resource Center Program Coordinator at EMU.

The Women’s Resource Center, which offers a variety of educational, fun, thought-provoking and social-justice minded programs, is one of the few programs accessible for students with children.

“What we really do well is provide resources for women, and if we don’t have them directly on campus there are places in the community that would have some of these resources,” said Klein.

In conjunction with the Women’s Resource Center, the EMU’s Children Institute offers high quality early childhood education programming to families of EMU students and surrounding communities. The Institute offers full- and half-day programs designed to meet the needs of students and working families.

“I do use the Children’s Institute in the summer, because it’s on campus and (my daughter) can do daycare there while I’m in school,” says EMU graduate student LaShay Dandridge. Dandridge, who obtained her undergraduate degree in April 2009, is now a 2nd year student within the graduate counseling program. Her daughter is now 6-years old.

“The Children’s Institute is a great resource, because it’s an on campus daycare, so for people who do not have a car or who can’t get off campus that’s a great resource. One of the biggest things (for students) is having daycare, you have to have some type of child care when you’re in school in order to get through it,” says Dandridge.

Dandridge’s experience shows that campus resources are available for students who are single parents and are aware of the resources. However, Johnson says her experience has not been as fortunate.

“Actually I wasn’t aware that Eastern offered those programs. I am currently enrolled as a normal student. No help from Eastern,” said Johnson.

Johnson believes that because she is a commuter student from outside the Ypsilanti area, she lacks the knowledge that residential students, such as Dandridge, already have regarding on-campus resources.

Research conducted by http://education.stateuniversity.com, says that commuter students encounter many challenges that residential students do not. Commuter students, particularly first-year students, often have a difficult time "fitting in" to the campus community. Commuters often find the task of meeting students challenging because their only point of contact with other students is in the classroom, a small part of the total college experience. Residential students live, eat, study, and socialize together in residence halls, thus having greater opportunities to make friends and to become socially integrated into the campus community.

Commuting is one of the factors which can slow the academic progress for students like Johnson.

“Statistics show that only 1.8 percent of the student populations who happen to be single-parents earn their Bachelors degree before the age of 30,” says Elise Buggs, the Director of the Keys to Degrees Program at EMU.

Although the program itself has yet to be considered an available resource to the student body, the Keys to Degrees Program is designed for academically qualified single men and women, ages 18 to 24, at the time of their enrollment, who are the parents of young children. The Program serves as an umbrella which coordinates specific services such as academic assistance, child care, and financial assistance for all students with children. Choosing from among EMU’s programs of study, these young parents enjoy the opportunity to complete an undergraduate degree in an environment that supports their special needs and the needs of their children. Program benefits include campus housing and the full array of support services offered by the university.

“I was a single-parent myself so I understand the dynamics of being a full-time college student, while having other responsibilities outside of the classroom,” Buggs went on to say.

The success of Buggs Keys to Degrees Program is based on whether or not the program is able to reach all students, such as Dandridge and Johnson. If Johnson chooses to participate in the program she may no longer have to worry about bringing little Elijah to class. This change may not just avoid the awkward glances exchanged from her classmates. The program could expedite her attempt to graduate.

(VIDEO: Single Parent Basics (Single Parenting)

NewsTrust Essay

In today’s society, there is a common misconception that as long as the internet continues to flourish, as can be seen with the recent Wiki leaks controversy, the role and need for newspapers, as well as its journalists, will one day cease to exist. However, in utilizing websites such as NewsTrust.net, this notion may change for those who aren’t as open to the idea as others.
NewsTrust.net, which serves as a social networking site and an educational tool to train readers to recognize quality journalism, offers to help readers “Think Like A Journalist,” a formidable task as millions of news-related posts, blogs and sites are created each day. Nonetheless, the website has continued to serve as a textbook example for aspiring and current journalists who are actively reporting in the field.
The website raises several questions in initiating the thought process of a journalist which allows him or her to effectively perform his or her responsibilities. What is the difference between skepticism and pessimism? Does the public have a right to know the news that affects or afflicts them? When I see a “hole” in a story missing viewpoints or sources how can I fill it with facts using online resources? And lastly what are the rights in the Bill of Rights (http://newstrust.net/guides)?
The four D’s of thinking like a journalist exemplify the qualities of good journalism. They are: doubt, detect, discern and demand. (http://newstrust.net/guides). These qualities can be applied when conducting a review for any of the selected articles NewsTrust has to offer, as can be seen with one of my many previously reviewed articles. Doubt is a healthy skepticism that questions everything. Detect is defined as a “nose for news” and relentless pursuit of the truth. Discern is a priority for fairness, balance and objectivity in reporting, and demand is considered a focus on free access to information and freedom of speech (http://newstrust.net/guides).
For example the article entitled, “Justice Department says’ don’t ask, don’t tell ruling will harm troops,” discusses how the Justice Department requested a federal judge to set aside her decision stopping the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy for gays and lesbians in the military until it can appeal the ruling, saying the decision would “irreparably” harm our military and the national security of the United States. In evaluating an article such as this, I would decipher whether the articles possessed all of the qualities required for a professional journalist. Was the article factual? Was it fair? Was it well-sourced? Did it show context? Was the story in-depth? Enterprising? Relevant? And well-written? All of these questions serve as a guideline for journalists to consider when writing a quality news story.
The next step is the reviews of the review sort of speak. By reviewing the news at NewsTrust, you’ll begin to think like a journalist. You’ll distinguish news from opinion, become familiar with journalism principles and ethics, as well as sharpen your critical judgment. In doing such, your comments will also be reviewed by members who are affiliated with the website. However, depending on the content of the article, the reviewers may or may not always agree with your point of view.
As tedious and redundant as the evaluation process may have been, my overall experience with Newstrust was very enlightening. The process works for aspiring journalists like me, who are skeptical about a diminishing profession such as journalism. Nonetheless, the website has continued to serve as a helpful resource for aspiring and current journalists who are learning to actively report.


http://www.newstrust.net/members/justin-curry