Final Post - 2

Besem Etta-Ashu
Contemporary Literacies
Final Post - 2

PERSONAL CONNECTION TO HIGHER EDUCATION

In my first post for my final project, I wrote about the importance of Higher Education and also connected it with some points from the class reading, The Other Wes Moore. While reading the text, I realized that there were a lot of personal connections that both myself and the characters in the book had in regards to higher education. 

Pursuing higher education or trying to reach the next level in my educational background, has always played a major role in my life. To be honest, education is one of the main assets of my life which I use constantly not only to grow into the amazing individual that I am today but also into the person I want to be in the next years to come. 

There is no doubt that higher education played a major role in the lives of not only both Wes but also their families. The author Wes was fortunate enough to be in a family where both parents are college graduates. Wes's mother, Joy Thomas entered American University in Washington D.C. in 1968. At college, Joy quickly fell in with the OASATAU, the very long acronym for a young group, the Organization of African and African-American Students at the African University. Later on, she became a writing assisting who began working for Wes's father. (page 8-9). 

Wes got his name from his father Wesley who had a dream of being on television and having a voice that made an impact as a young man growing up. He made his dream come true by graduating from Bard College in 1971 and then becoming a young reporter who traveled to many countries following stories, cases, and jobs. He was calm. reassuring, and hardworking. On April 15, 1982, he ended his radio news broadcast on WMAL, a stalwart in the Washington D.C., market. (pages 11-12). 

On the other hand, the other Wes Moore's mother, Mary was trying to get enrolled in John Hopkins University (pg.18) but she had to drop out because she was unable to receive enough funds to attend college. Although Mary was unable to attend college it was clear that she wanted her kids to pursue higher education. From the reading, it stated that "she shared with him, in the language he could understand, why the school was so important. She explained to him the significance of being the first one in the family to go college" (pg.20).

My father attended NJIT and has a bachelor's degree while my mom has her associate degree while learning to become a Registered Nurse. I am grateful to have been able to attend really nice schools because my parents were willing to sacrifice a lot of their time to make sure my siblings and I are able to pursue our dreams, just like Mary and Joy did for their kids. My parents worked a lot of hours and used all their savings to meet our school expenses. I have received a great amount of scholarships throughout my journey in school just like the author Wes has had. There are some people that I know who have ended their journey to pursue higher education and began looking at drugs as the greatest thing they have in life. But everyone has their own individual reasons for the choices they make in life. Wes decided to drop out of school and focus on the amount of money he was making from drugs but later on decided to try going back to school for his GED and creating a better life for himself and his family.

Higher Education might not be the priority at the beginning of an individual's life but it definitely will become a priority at some point in their life.




















                                                                                                        Author Wes Moore




























                                                                                         Author Wes Moore's Mother: Joy