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NEDP Changing Lives Scholarship Recipient Sydney

Sydney-photo-web

Meet Sydney, one of the 2022 NEDP Scholarship recipients. Sydney is a recent NEDP graduate from Enfield Adult Education in Enfield, Connecticut.

Sydney always dreamed of playing collegiate volleyball. It was her reason for doing so well in school, the reason she ate well, the reason she kept in shape. Things changed in her junior year of high school, and her dream was crushed. She writes, “I had been attending a magnet school since the sixth grade, playing volleyball for their team, and I was an excellent student. Due to my family’s situation, I was forced to leave that school and attend a local high school. It became very challenging for me to maintain good grades because their grading system was very different from what I was used to. They did not have a volleyball team, so I stopped playing. Subsequently, by the end of my junior year, my family was moving to a new town. I figured it was pointless to pursue a diploma at that time since my grades were not great, and I convinced myself that there was no way a college would accept me to play for them. She withdrew from high school and didn’t enroll in the new school. She struggled with depression and wondered what she was going to do with her life.

Her mother told her about the NEDP, and she passed her diagnostic assessments soundly. After enrolling in the NEDP, she felt as though her life had purpose again. “My Assessor was so kind and encouraging.” She started playing club volleyball again and knew that her life was back on track. She was accepted into college, about which she was thrilled and was offered a chance to play collegiate volleyball.

She writes, “My dream had finally come into view, and it would not have happened if I hadn’t discovered this program. I owe all my success to NEDP, and I thank my mother every day for pushing me in that direction.”

Her Assessor credited Sydney’s hard work and perseverance to her success as she managed the responsibilities of her full-time job, of the NEDP, her participation in sports, prerequisite coursework, and with an unwaveringly positive and industrious attitude. She used the resources available to her, communicated clearly when she needed more time to prepare for the next meetings, and put in the extra time to study her own extensive notes. Sydney saw the NEDP as an opportunity to change her life. So, she did everything she could to ensure she was successful and stayed on track to meet her goal of completing the NEDP this year. Sydney often noted how her work in the NEDP has broadened her horizons and enabled her to begin applying to college programs, but it has been evident repeatedly that her own unique approach to tackling challenging situations has propelled her to the college-bound path that she finds herself on today.

Sydney, we wish you all the best at Nichols College and in fulfilling your goal of playing collegiate volleyball and having a career in athletic management! We are honored to have been a part of your educational journey.

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