Page 12 - Robeson Living Holiday 2018

RCC Student Studies

in Berlin By Dennis Watts

Kim Fuqua standing in front of remnants of the
Berlin Wall in Germany

I recently read an article about college students which made first day of class changed her life forever. Fuqua gradu-
the statement that “nontraditional is the new traditional,” ated from Fairmont High School in 2000, so she was in
meaning that an increasing number of students are not in the her early 30’s by the time she enrolled at RCC. In the
traditional age range of 18- 24 years old. That’s been the case fourteen years between high school graduation and en-
at Robeson Community College for quite some time now, rolling in college, Fuqua devoted her life to raising two
but sometimes nontraditional students get the opportunity to sons while working as a permanent substitute teacher in
participate in activities that are usually associated more with an exceptional children’s class at Orrum Middle School
traditional students. where she also coached and led the school choir. After
ten years of marriage, Fuqua and her husband separated
Robeson Community College alumna Kimberly Fuqua spent and she decided that going back to school was the only
a few weeks studying in Berlin a year last year and enjoyed way to have a better life. “It was hard,” she says. “I can
the experience so much that she applied to spend an entire remember pulling up to RCC the first day of class with
semester studying at Canterbury Christ Church University in not enough gas to return the next day. But I got out of my
Canterbury, Kent, in the United Kingdom--the same Canter- car anyway. I struggled initially because I could barely
bury that many will remember from reading Chaucer’s Can- even use a computer. I remember entering class the first
terbury Tales in high school. day and I knew that RCC was right where I belonged. I
felt like it was destiny.”
To get to Canterbury Fuqua began her journey at Robeson
Community College in the fall of 2014 where she says her Fuqua went on to do very well at RCC over the next two

Page 12
Robeson Living ~ Holiday 2018