At the Regional Sites

TTU at Hill College Student Success Story

By Delaney Moreno, Graduate Assistant

Balancing children, a part-time job, and getting involved with your community is a full-time job itself. Most people wouldn't even consider going back to school on top of that, but Karah Mitchell just saw another opportunity.

As she was looking for a perfect college where she could stay home with her family and be close at the same time, Texas Tech at Hill College met her needs. This location is the closest to where she lives with her family, too, which gave her another reason to enroll.

“Since I own a home in a nearby town, it was easiest to stay home and finish my schooling online with only a short drive away if I needed to meet with my advisor at any time,” Karah explained.

In addition to a busy life schedule, Karah was one of many who balanced earning a degree online at TTU. Not every college offers the opportunity to earn a degree entirely online like the regional sites do at Texas Tech. Karah explained how grateful she is for the online education program.

“By doing distance learning I was able to work part time and stay home with my little ones while doing my schoolwork at the end of the day, or whenever I had free time. I would not have that same opportunity if I were required to do in-person classes.”

Karah encourages all people to make that step to earn a degree, no matter how long it takes.

“My journey to becoming a college graduate is not typical,” she said. “When I was a junior in high school, I found out that I was pregnant with twins. I had just turned 17 years old and decided that it was best to drop out of school.”

Shortly after that decision, she opted to get her GED. When her twins were only two months old, she began her college career in the fall semester of 2014. That is when she found out the many possibilities that lay ahead for her future at TTU Hill College.

“It took six long years of hard work and multiple semesters of only six hours at a time, but it was worth it. I was able to walk across the stage at graduation in December with my twins to witness it. My college experience was vastly different compared to most people my age, but I am very thankful and proud to reach this point,” Karah said.