Shaylee Felicetty-Kacena
“Online learning was my ticket to independence and the ability to improve my life.”
– Shaylee Felicetty-Kacena
I was raised in foster care and had all the excuses in the world to opt out and do nothing with my future. I was able to overcome my situation by taking the opportunities that online learning offers to personalize learning and to have a flexible schedule.
Online learning has helped me because I am a 16-year-old student who is currently graduating this year; 2 years earlier than scheduled. I am in the process of emancipation and I live on my own. I needed a better education plan to be able to achieve my goal of graduating early and the only way I was able to do that is to take online classes.
Online classes can bridge learning gaps for students to be able to learn on their own time and help meet their personal goals and needs. I will be forever grateful for the opportunities that taking self-paced online courses has given me. Having a flexible schedule allowed me to work full time while I was going to school, which gave me the financial independence to start the process of becoming a legally emancipated minor.
“The online courses I took were rigorous, which I feel has prepared me for college-level courses, while at the same time I was able to focus my efforts and complete them much more quickly than I would have been able to do any other way.”
I plan to attend a two-year college in the fall, where I will get an Associate Degree before I transfer to a 4-year university to pursue a nursing degree. I have a passion for working with children, and as my young cousin has cancer, I plan to have a career in oncology nursing in order to help other children like him.
I believe that the experience that I have had in successful completion of online courses will set me up for success in college as well. Thank you for the opportunity to tell my story.