June 14, 2017
Mother of Three Chose Mesa College to Continue Her Education
Commencement Highlight on Psychology Major Lori Fletcher
By Lauren J. Mapp
Psychology major Lori Fletcher graduated last month from San Diego Mesa College, after
studying in what she refers to as a “comfortable learning environment” with dedicated
professors.
“I always felt really comfortable here at Mesa,” Fletcher said. “It was terrifying
coming back to school after 17 years and I just thought Mesa was this big, giant school
and it was just going to swallow me whole, but it wasn’t like that. The classes were
small, the instructors were there and I wasn’t in a class with 300 other people. If
I had a question or needed something, my professors were always there.”
Though she said that she is “excited and happy that it’s over,” Fletcher said that
completing her education has taken a lot of hard work but she is glad that her dedication
to her studies has paid off.
“One of the biggest challenges was not quitting and not giving into all of the other
demands of life, and just pushing forward to continue to complete graduation,” she
added.
With a husband in the U.S. Navy and three children, she said it was difficult to balance
life as a student, a mother and a wife, but she dedicated herself to school in order
to be a good role model to her kids. She also said that Extended Opportunities Programs and Services Program helped to keep her dedicated to her studies.
“It was very stressful, but as I tell my kids, I don’t let them quit anything, so
when I started I needed to make sure that I completed it,” Fletcher said. “I had a
lot of support, so I was very fortunate. It takes a village, and I had a lot of people
helping me including instructors and the EOPS program. With them keeping up with progress
reports with me really made a difference.”
At age 16, Fletcher had her first daughter and dropped out of high school. She later
completed her GED, but delayed attending college because she was working and taking
care of her children.
“I always said that one day, when my kids were older, I was going to back to school,”
Fletcher said. “I think I always said it, but never really believed it, until one
day I just decided to come here, check things out and sign up. I wanted to be a better
role model for my kids, like their father, so this was my avenue to try to pursue
that.”
One of her fondest memories of attending Mesa College was taking tennis, she said.
“Being outside and active while learning something new was incredible and I will never
forget Coach Sanchez and all the people I met who made this sport fun and exciting
for me,” Fletcher said. “The semester when I took tennis, I was really stressed out
about my classes and it really took a lot of stress off of me.”
Now that she has graduated, Fletcher and her family will be moving abroad, with hopes
to get orders to move to a military base in either Italy or Japan. She plans to continue
her education at a slower pace, but would like to eventually earn a Bachelor’s Degree.
EOPS is a program on campus to help guide first generation, historically disadvantaged
and low-income students by promoting access, academic achievement, retention and overall
personal success. The Program is committed to enhancing the students educational experience
by empowering them to define and pursue their academic, career and personal goals
while attending San Diego Mesa College. For more information about EOPS, call (619) 388-2706.
Tags: Commencement, Graduation, Graduating Olympians, EOPS
