鈥淎re you sure you want to do this? If you failed once, you鈥檙e probably going to fail again.鈥�
And with that, Jeanette Marie Reynoso received some of the worst advice ever given by a college counselor. Reynoso was shocked. She thought the indifference and casual cruelty she encountered in her youth was behind her. But she dried her tears, picked herself up and enrolled in Seminole State College, the first step on a path that has led her to 麻豆原创 and halfway to realizing a lifelong dream.
鈥淚鈥檝e wanted to be a teacher my entire life,鈥� says Reynoso. 鈥淚 was that kid who would ask for a blackboard for Christmas and I would teach to my stuffed animals. When my cousins came over, I would make them worksheets on notebook paper.鈥�
But her own experience with schooling 鈥� and with life 鈥� started out rocky. As a young girl growing up in Bergen County, New Jersey, Reynoso never knew her father. Then, at the age of 12, her mother dropped her off at a sleepover and never came back. Reynoso鈥檚 sixth-grade reading teacher helped her get into foster care, but the group home she ended up at didn鈥檛 allow her to attend school. A teacher would visit regularly, but the lessons were basic and unstructured.
鈥淚 read hundreds of books because we weren鈥檛 allowed to watch TV,鈥� Reynoso says. 鈥淭hat was really where my love of reading started.鈥�
Reynoso moved on from that facility at 14 and was finally able to attend high school. But having gone without formal instruction for so long, she struggled. Reynoso dropped out a year later and started working full time. Then, when she turned 18, she aged out of the foster care system.
鈥淭he director of the group home said, 鈥楾he state won鈥檛 pay for you to stay here anymore,鈥� and I asked her what I was supposed to do,鈥欌�� says Reynoso. 鈥淪he said 鈥楢 lot of people go to college,鈥� and I said 鈥極K, I guess I鈥檒l do that.鈥欌��
Reynoso got good scores on the SATs and was accepted to all five colleges to which she had applied. She settled on Fairleigh Dickinson College because it was right around the corner from her group home. For the first time in years, Reynoso was felt hope, pride and a sense that the worst might be behind her. But those positive thoughts were shattered on move-in day at the college.
鈥淚 got there and everything was out of my league,鈥� says Reynoso. 鈥淓veryone was there with their parents, moving into the dorm, and I showed up by myself carrying a black plastic bag. I had the clothes I had taken from my group home and that was it. I remember just crying my eyes out. That was in August and I only made it to October before I left.鈥�
After her false start in college, Reynoso spent a year volunteering for AmeriCorps, an experience that rekindled her passion for teaching.
鈥淢y year in AmeriCorps was in one of the roughest school districts in New Jersey, and it was the most transformative year of my life,鈥� says Reynoso. 鈥淚 wrote an after-school literacy program for kids in kindergarten through eighth grade.鈥�
Not long after that, Reynoso met Miguel, the man who would become her husband. Suddenly, she went from having no family to being embraced by a huge one.
鈥淲hen I was in the foster care system, I didn鈥檛 have any family,鈥� Reynoso says. 鈥淲hen my husband and I met, I said 鈥楾ell me about your family,鈥� and he said 鈥榃ell, I have 12 aunts and uncles and dozens of cousins.鈥欌��
Most of her husband鈥檚 family lived in Florida, so they decided to move to the Orlando area. After having three children, Reynoso decided to go back to school to be a teacher. She started inquiring at local colleges, which led to that disheartening interaction with an academic advisor.
鈥淚 left that meeting in tears. I said to myself, 鈥榃hat was I thinking? I鈥檓 meant to be a stay-at-home mom,鈥� 鈥� Reynoso says. 鈥淢y husband said, 鈥楧o not let this one person dictate your future.鈥� 鈥�
With support from her husband, she enrolled at Seminole State College and immediately set about proving the advisor wrong. Reynoso earned straight A鈥檚 throughout her time at SSC and finished with a 4.0 GPA, all while balancing her classwork with her responsibilities at home.
After earning her associates degree, Reynoso took advantage of the DirectConnect program to continue her schooling at 麻豆原创. At first, the transition was overwhelming.
鈥淭he first time I stepped foot on campus, in January 2020, I remember thinking, 鈥榃hat am I doing?,鈥� 鈥� says Reynoso. 鈥淭here were flyers up everywhere for different clubs and events and I鈥檓 thinking 鈥榊eah, I go to bed at nine o鈥檆lock. How am I going to fit in here?鈥欌��
It didn’t take long, however, for Reynoso to settle in and start taking advantage of the some of the programs 麻豆原创 offers to support students.
鈥淚 saw a flyer that said 鈥楪et on the Knight track.鈥� If you took a bunch of different steps, like meeting with an academic advisor, going to two workshops and meeting with SARC (the Student Academic Resource Center), you鈥檇 get a $500 scholarship,鈥� says Reynoso. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how I ended up applying for McNair Scholars. It was a catalyst for all of these really cool things that I got to do.鈥�
Then along came COVID. Ironically, some of the same pandemic-driven changes that caused many students to struggle actually helped Reynoso excel.
鈥淢oving classes online made it really easy for me to be active and participate in things where I wouldn鈥檛 have been able to be on campus in person,鈥� Reynoso says. 鈥淪ome meet ups were at six in the evening, when I鈥檇 be in the middle of making dinner for my family. But I could Zoom while throwing together a salad. In this case, technology really helped me feel integrated and feel like I belonged.鈥�
Fast forward a couple of years and Reynoso has excelled in her pursuit of her elementary education degree. She participated in the Phillips Academy Institute for Recruitment of Teachers (IRT) summer program, which prepares future educators to pursue advanced degrees. Last summer, Reynoso also studied virtually at Vanderbilt University as part of the Leadership Alliance summer research program.
In addition to all of her other responsibilities at school and at home, Reynoso finds time to volunteer, helping students through a number of 麻豆原创 programs, including Saturday reading camps and the university鈥檚 bookmobile initiative, which gives away free books to kids who don鈥檛 have access to a library. Reynoso also volunteers on an ongoing basis at the ACE (Academic Center of Excellence) school in the Parramore neighborhood of Orlando.
All this experience in the field left Reynoso well prepared for her current role as a full-time student teacher at Bentley Elementary School in Seminole County.
鈥淲hen it was time for me to be in my own classroom, I was ready,鈥� she says.
On the cusp of both graduating and turning 36, she鈥檚 still not done proving that old advisor wrong. Reynoso was recently accepted into the 麻豆原创 master鈥檚 program for elementary education. From there, she hopes to become a “triple knight,” earning her doctorate in the same subject. Ultimately, Reynoso wants to become the superintendent of a school district, a position that will allow her to exercise her love of teaching while “trickling down” some of the lessons she’s learned over years of being involved in education and activism.
Her message to other parents is to not shy away from filling up their days in pursuit if their dreams.
鈥淥ne of the biggest misconceptions about going to college is that there鈥檚 a point in time when you鈥檙e too old to do it,鈥� says Reynoso. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not easy juggling childcare and pickups and making meals and all those other things. But you can do this. School is for you, and you can join clubs and meet people and be a part of things.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 so glad I took the leap,鈥� she says. 鈥淏eing a Knight really has changed my life.鈥�
