Ariel LaMarche

Student

Escanaba native Ariel LaMarche didn’t graduate from high school, but the birth of her daughter years later got her interested in early childhood education – and motivated her to resume her own studies. Now, she is actively pursuing a degree in this subject as a Bay College freshman.

According to Ariel, she would have graduated from Escanaba Senior High School in 2013 had she not dropped out. In 2017, she became a mother; while she initially planned to live as a stay-at-home mom, she eventually had another idea.

“The more I raised my daughter, and the more I taught her and saw her grow, the more I fell in love with early childhood education,” she said.

To follow this goal, she decided to get her GED and go to college to become a teacher. After earning her GED in the fall of 2022, Ariel officially became a Bay College student in the winter 2023 semester.

“It was local and very convenient as a mom,” she said.

As of mid-January 2023, Ariel had only taken classes at Bay for a few weeks. However, she said she appreciates the assistance made available to Bay’s students.

“There are so many resources and so many people who really want you to succeed,” she said.

To name an example of how the staff and faculty at Bay have already helped her, Ariel talked about her experiences with ADHD.

“It just makes having to focus and get things done really hard. You always feel like your brain is going a mile a minute, so concentrating is very hard,” she said.

To minimize this condition’s impact on her studies, Ariel has been working with Jessica Manier in Bay’s Office of Accessibility.

“She’s been helping me with my ADHD. Today, she helped me plan out my schedule for this week to make sure I’ll get all my stuff done,” she said.

Other accommodations Ariel has received include extended test time and audio versions of certain textbooks.

Along with this, Ariel said she has joined the TRIO program and hopes to find other ways of getting engaged with what Bay has to offer.

“I’m trying to get as involved as I can and get all the resources I need, because I really want to succeed and be a good student – and, in return, a good teacher,” she said.

Right now, Ariel aims to earn her associate degree in early childhood education from Bay at some point in 2025. Beyond that point, she hopes to get a four-year degree in the same subject – but thanks to the Lake Superior State University Regional Center at Bay’s campus, she will not need to leave Escanaba to pursue this goal.

“I’ll be doing the LSSU program, so I’ll actually still be here. It’s great that they do that, and that it’s all online,” she said.

After getting her bachelor’s degree, her next goal will be to find a job in her field of study – whether that means staying in the Upper Peninsula or heading elsewhere.

“My dream job is being a social emotional teacher for preschool through kindergarten-age students,” Ariel said.

Ariel thanked the people at Bay for helping her college education get off to a good start.

“It’s just a great school with so many great resources. They really want you to do well, and they’re here to help,” she said.