I came to Elms after earning my associate’s degree from Delaware Technical Community College. All throughout school, I struggled academically, and courses at my community college were no different. When COVID happened, I decided to take some time off from school. I was convinced that after failing and/or dropping out of multiple classes over the years, I was ‘not meant for college.’
After two years off, I still had no idea what I wanted to do as a career, but I knew I needed to finish my degree. I put my trust in God, and I returned to school to complete my associate’s degree in Elementary Education. During that time, I began working as a one-on-one instructional assistant in an elementary school. My assigned student used an Eyegaze assistive device to communicate, and I found great joy in working with her to aid in her communication, not only educationally but socially as well. My coworkers told me that I had a natural talent working with the student and her device. It is a talent I never knew I had, but it was one I wished to pursue.
I found Elms had an online program for Speech-Language Pathology Assistants, so I applied and was enrolled beginning in the fall of 2023. I chose Elms because it offered my program remotely and because of the overall Christian atmosphere of the campus.
Through Elms, I have gained the confidence in school that I never had before. I have been on the Dean’s List each semester, and my grade point average has risen from 2.87 to 3.89 in just two years. I have also been accepted into the master’s program at Baylor University. My next goal is to earn my master’s and become a Speech Language Pathologist, and work to give voice to those people without one.
The online program at Elms was exactly what I was looking for. The curriculum was so easy to manage while I continued to work full-time. The workload was flexible enough that I was able to get married in the fall semester, go on my honeymoon to Hawaii the following spring, and still keep up with my work. Each semester, I made the dean’s list.
I fell in love with the 8-week course sessions schedule because it was fast-paced. Taking three courses at a time, I was able to complete six over the course of a 15-week semester. This was crucial to building my academic confidence.
I loved my program. I got everything I wanted out of it. I really enjoyed my professors. Kristine Goldynia was always so informative and kind to all students, and that is something you could feel even as an online student. She has a love for this field, and her teaching inspires me. Lauren Gallagher is another favorite professor. She is tough, but I respect and appreciate her level of professionalism and how she expects the same in return from students. Her courses are packed full of assignments, but I feel each one will assist me in becoming a better clinician in the future.
I am so pleased that I attended Elms. It was absolutely rewarding. If anyone is looking to take the same program I did, I would 100% recommend Elms College. If their other online degree programs are anything like the Speech-Language Pathology program that I took, then I would recommend it 1,000%.
Laurel, Del.
Class of 2025
Bachelor’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology Assistant program
Sr. Kathleen Kirley ’66 School of Continuing Education