Business and IndustryOctober 05, 2023

When Class Is Half a World Away

Written By: Ian Silvester

As Shatoya Freeman’s day is just beginning, most of her professors are preparing for the second half of their day. It’s not due to an overnight schedule or a desire to sleep in. Instead, it’s due to the expanse of being four time zones apart.
 
Shatoya is a University of Arkansas – Fort Smith student enrolled in the Adult Degree Completion Program (ADCP). Like most of her ADCP classmates, she commutes to class with the touch of a button and a series of clicking keystrokes.

Unlike most of her classmates, Shatoya is nearly 4,000 miles away in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. She is an active member of the US Army stationed in Hawaii, but her coursework began in the sands of the Middle East.

Deployed to Kuwait, Shatoya was hit with an educational epiphany. “I was going through the UAFS site and came across (the ADCP). So, I started looking into it and thought, ‘This is perfect for me!’”

She meets with her professors and classmates virtually through Zoom. In this virtual classroom, she caught the eye of her former professor, Dr. Kristin Tardif. In these meetings, Tardif quickly recognized the drive and discipline displayed by Shatoya when it came to her education.

“Shatoya is one of those that took very little effort to motivate because she was just a self-motivator,” Tardif explained. However, through conversations between the student and professor, it became clear to Tardif that Shatoya’s motivation came from life experience.
 
Shatoya, 32, is from Fort Smith and earned UAFS credit while attending Northside High School. She graduated in 2009, but as a single parent of an 18-month-old, education was no longer her top priority. She joined the Army to help support her young family and has since realized the benefit of furthering her education.
 
“In the military, I’m in human resources, a leadership position,” she said. Shatoya is working on completing her bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership. She said, “This course will help strengthen me on not just the civilian side but the military portion as well.”
 
Yes, the program is designed to help her earn her bachelor’s degree, and it will pay dividends in her professional life, but what Shatoya loves most about the ADCP is the flexibility.
 
“The mission is always first when it comes to active duty. It could feel like a normal day, and then something springs up on us,” she explained.
 
Shatoya said her professors fully understand the short notice nature of her job and the long periods when she cannot communicate with them due to being “on a plane for 21 hours coming back to the mainland.” Thankfully, she said, they have all worked with her and have “all been amazing.”

According to Tardif, the feeling is mutual. “If you really want to know the truth, I think she’s the poster child of the ADCP.” Shatoya’s connection to the military might not be unique for ADCP professors, but her dedication to learning, active participation, and attitude sets her apart.

Come the summer of 2024, every made-up assignment or test, every login, and the navigation of distance and time will all be worth it.

Shatoya’s goal will be accomplished with a call to the stage, a handshake, and the presentation of her bachelor’s degree – which she has no plans to miss.

“For my (graduation), I’m going to take leave,” Shatoya said with a laugh and a big smile. “I want my kids to know that in the future, if they ever have a little bump in the road, no matter how old they might feel like they’re getting, no matter how hard the world may be, education is something you can always fall back on. It’s never too late to do.”

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