By Ethan Lucas
Second Place Winner of the Zane State College Spring Semester Student Writing Contest
There are 1,655,285 public school students in the state of Ohio as of 2020, according to the Ohio Department of Education (“Facts and Figures,” 2020). Out of that immense number, I am one high school student in Guernsey County. I am one of 1.6 million, and Zane State College helped me as though I was the only student in the state. Zane State is there to help anyone who has a passion for learning. I know this because of how they have helped me through taking my first college class, juggling college and high school, and scheduling online classes in an unorthodox year.
First and foremost, I should not even be in college yet, but Zane State still guided me to becoming a freshman as though I had already finished high school. I am a College Credit Plus student, and Zane State accepting my application was the start to me furthering my education. The start of this journey was not without struggles, however, and when I needed help, ZSC was there for me. When I had questions about placement testing, when I needed to be registered for my first college class, Zane State faculty helped me schedule the Accuplacer test and join Composition I. Being in high school and beginning college is no small undertaking, and without the help freely given by ZSC, it could have been much more difficult.
As a high school student, I am still completing high school classes. My professor made contending with two different programs very easy, without even knowing it. She made Blackboard easy to understand, work with, and navigate; and when struggling with another online site, the value of that cannot be understated. She provided video tutorials for discussion boards, learning modules, and submissions that truly helped me better learn from and use the Blackboard website. Because Blackboard is easily usable, I am able to quickly and effectively find what I am looking for and complete my lessons, which, in turn, allows me to complete my high school classes as quickly as I would without another site.
Along similar lines, all of my classes are online this year due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, and Zane State made sure that did not hinder my ability to learn. In a year with such unusual circumstances, scheduling classes, orientation, and taking classes became an online experience. ZSC staff was there to help me with each of the challenges that this year presented, and without the guidance provided by them, I doubt that I would be enrolled this year. The programs that they have in place allowed me to take classes from home, and now I am merely a few weeks from completing my first class.
In conclusion, I am a CCP college student, but without the work ZSC did to assist me, I would still be taking high school English. Because of the effort they put into me and my educational career, I know that ZSC is there to help anyone who has a passion for learning. I am now looking into next year’s courses, and I will undoubtedly be choosing ZSC to continue my path to higher education.
References
Facts and figures. (n.d.). The Ohio Department of Education. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from http://education.ohio.gov/Media/Facts-and-Figures
