David and Mary Stephan had supported two children through college and were still supporting a third when they did what they hadn’t done for a long while: they invested in themselves.
Both had attended Huntington College (as it was called then) for two years in the 1960s, then dropped out when funds ran low. They went on to raise a family. David farmed, and Mary eventually worked as a media clerk in a public school. They were happy, but both regretted not having finished their degrees.
Then two friends told them about enrolling in Huntington's EXCEL Program. Mary and David looked into EXCEL and liked its degree in organizational management, which they believed would make them better at their current careers—and, likely, ready them for future career changes.
Both liked the way EXCEL centered on an individually designed business problem, with each class relating to that problem. “The research process built skills,” David says. “We learned to do research online and even researched at the Library of Congress when we were in Washington on vacation.”
David is sure that his college education helps him look at farming less as a way of life and more as a business enterprise. “I still apply something from each class every day on my job,” he says.
Mary, too, uses the skills and knowledge she learned in EXCEL in her job, which involves budgeting, administration, and research.
Both, though, are open to career changes, and both feel better prepared for such now that they’ve earned college degrees.
“Anyone considering EXCEL needs an open mind, a desire to learn, and a willingness to spend time studying,” says David. “If you have all three, your time and money will be well spent.”