Pamela Peterson

Student

Pamela Peterson

Pamela Peterson, a 2001 graduate of Kingsford High School, was born and raised in Iron Mountain.  As a non-traditional student who did not enter college immediately following high school, she began attending Bay College during the winter 2021 semester.  With the completion of her winter 2023 semester in May, Pamela is now a Bay College graduate with an Associate in Arts – Social Work degree.

When asking Pam what led her to go to college and what led her to choose Bay as a nontraditional student, she stated, “What made me decide to decide to go to college was my journey of sobriety and recovery and I wanted to choose a profession where I could help others achieve a life of sobriety and continued recovery.”  She chose Bay College because it was close to home and is also where her mother attended and achieved her degree as well.

Choosing to go back to school after being out of high school for 20 years was a choice that Pam said had a life changing impact on her.  “I had no idea this is where I would be when I applied to Bay College 2 years ago. I wasn’t a very good high school student so when I decided to go back to school after being out of high school for 20 years, I had no idea what to expect and what I was really capable of. I have such gratitude to Bay College and TRIO for helping me build confidence in myself as a college student.”

When Pamela started classes at West Campus, she was originally looking at studying in the Psychology field, however, she ended up switching to the Associate in Arts – Social Work program.  She found that with her overall goals, this would allow her to branch out in a wider range of fields and professions.

As her time at Bay College comes to a close, we asked for a summary of her experiences at West Campus and at Bay College as a whole.  “It has been amazing to say the least. I have met so many people, the staff at Bay college has been so supportive of my journey and has helped me every step of the way. The cultural trips were my favorite because we had the opportunity to visit communities outside our own.”

Following the completion of her degree at Bay College, Pamela is going to be transferring to Northern Michigan University for the fall 2023 semester as a social work major.  She will be going to NMU as the recipient of the first Northern Michigan University “full-ride” Harden Scholarship, which is targeted solely towards transfer students.  When asked what receiving the scholarship means to her and if it had any impact on her plans, she stated, “I had applied to NMU last March (2022) and was accepted to start in fall of this year. I am a first-generation college student and this award will help me achieve my goals of becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and financially it will help me with setting my goals higher to achieve my masters in Social Work when the time comes.”

Professionally, her overall goal is to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and to work with and help others on their journey of sobriety and recovery.  “I have almost 3.5 years of sobriety and I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for the people that were in my position right now, educating themselves to help and support others suffering from the disease of addiction.”

What advice would Pamela give someone that is thinking about returning to college?  “Go for it! You will never know how well you are going to do at something unless you try. Try new things, explore your options, whether you fail or succeed at least you tried, and you can learn from your mistakes. Have a positive mindset and be kind to yourself. Set goals, follow your dreams, never give up, even if it takes 20 years to get you there.”

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