Availability made a difference
Tara Hale says that because of family responsibilities and job restraints, she likely would not have gone back to college if USC-Union had not been available.
By ANNA BROWN
Tara Hale says her time at USC-Union has helped her develop not only into a better student, but also into a more confident person — an accomplishment that might not have happened if she had returned to college at a larger school.
“The professors are all wonderful,” she said. “I had several pep talks from my professors when I first started that first year — ‘You can do it.’ That has really pushed me to come out of my shell a little bit and meant a lot to me. If I had had to go to Spartanburg to do this I don’t know if I would even still be in school.”
Mrs. Hale’s father was in the military and she grew up mostly in the Ft. Bragg area. She earned a degree in architectural technology from Fayetteville Technical Community College and in her early career worked as a draftsman for a land surveyor.
She and her husband eventually settled in Union, where both worked for the U.S. Postal Service. Now 36, she is the mother of a 13-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter.
In 2006, Mrs. Hale came to a crossroads. She had been thinking about returning to college and earning a bachelor’s degree for some time. The sudden death of a dear friend who was a year younger than she was compelled her to go ahead and enroll at USC-Union. She said USC-Union employee Cheryl Lowe, with whom she attends church, encouraged her to choose the school. She is studying nursing and plans to transfer this fall to USC-Upstate and earn her bachelor of science degree.
“When my friend passed away I thought ‘Well, I’d like to do something in the medical field,’” Mrs. Hale said. “Nursing seemed like a good option for me; I love helping other people.”
Mrs. Hale said she can’t say enough about USC-Union and the opportunities it offers. Going to college in town allowed her to continue her job with the postal service for the first two years of her studies.
“I have learned good study habits here,” she said. “I learned how to interact with the professors and the other students. When I go to Spartanburg, all my core classes for my degree will be in one building. That will be a lot easier than going all over campus.”
Mrs. Hale said closing USC-Union would be a big mistake.
“I think it would be doing a big disservice not just to citizens of Union County but to the citizens of surrounding counties,” she said. “If they wanted to be in the USC system and their only option was to drive to Spartanburg — that’s too far for some people. I couldn’t have done that when I first started back to school; it wouldn’t have been easy, especially with my children the way they were.”
But more important than convenience is the quality of education a student receives at USC-Union, she said.
“I have heard a lot of students who have moved on to Upstate and other schools say they were better prepared for their higher level classes than some of the others who were already at the institution or had come from other institutions,” she said.
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