Rhonda Bass was raising two children, caring for her aging father, and working full time when it hit her, she yearned for something different. “I felt like there was something missing in my life, and as it turned out, it was an education,” she says.
From age 16, Rhonda lived on her own, and she dropped out of high school as a result. She had her first child at 19 and another a few years later. Her children were her focus, and Rhonda worked as a restaurant server and bartender to support her family. Eventually, she got a job at a hotel, where her hard work earned her the opportunity to move into management.
It was not until Rhonda’s father passed away in 2012 that she started contemplating going to college. “During the experience of him getting sick, I found that I enjoyed taking care of him, which is what got me thinking about nursing,” she says. She shared the idea with her kids, who were in middle and high school then, and got an enthusiastic response. “They were awesome about it. It made me want to pursue this not just for me, but for them too.”
To read more about Rhonda’s journey, read more here