My City July 2022

MYCOMMUNITY

A s a student who has attended many colleges and universities, I can honestly say that at tending the University of Michigan-Flint has been one of the best decisions I have made. e faculty in the nursing program care deeply about the success of the students and will do anything to help them succeed and reach their goals. e accelerated nursing program has been extremely interesting and rewarding, it has been one of the most challenging degrees I have completed to date. I am thankful that I am graduating with an extensive knowledge base and wonderful clinical experiences to start my career. In the future, my ultimate goal is to return to UM-Flint for the Doctor of Nurse Anesthe sia Practice program after working as a critical care nurse. Becoming a nurse anesthetist will allow me to utilize my science background from my previous chemistry degrees, my nursing degree, and the skills gained working in critical care. I have always been interested in even tually obtaining a doctorate degree in order to have the highest knowledge and experience to practice and educate others. I am a nontraditional student. I started working while I was in high school and continued after graduation. I wanted to climb the corporate ladder into a project manager position but holding me back was that I did not have the required education. Like many in this same situation, I was already extremely busy working full-time, raising a family and taking care of my household, so I thought I had zero free time to go back to college. Dreaming of this goal coupled with some father ly advice that I tell my daughter Natalee and son Cameron, I decided to change my world. You see, every day I tell them to change the world, not because I want them to make some Earth-altering change, but to remind them that no matter their situation, they have opportunities every day to change their path and make their world what they want it to be. So, with my own advice and to set a great example, I enrolled at Mott Community College and then transferred to UM-Flint, as I had always dreamed of going to this university and having that “Block M” on my diploma. Some people have asked, “How do you do it? How do you balance all your responsibilities and ‹t in being a full-time student?” I tell them all the same thing, which is one of the biggest lessons I have learned during these last few years: Time is a great equalizer. Everything that has ever been done and everything that will ever be done is accomplished in the same 24 hours that you and I and everyone else on this Earth have. When something is a priority and it is important to you, you will ‹nd the necessary time to get it done. You, me and everyone else on this planet are given 24 hours each and every day. It is up to us to make them count toward something important. ®

Hillary Beeckman Bachelor of Science, Nursing Bay City, MI

Aaron Fogelsonger Bachelor of Business Administration, Entrepreneurship & Innovation Management Flushing, MI

My City Magazine is proud to highlight these outstanding scholars and we wish them all a bright and rewarding future.

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