ARMED WITH LAKE LAND SUPPORT LAKER ALUMNI FIND SUCCESS IN 2020

ARMED WITH LAKE LAND SUPPORT

LAKER ALUMNI FIND SUCCESS IN 2020

HAYLEY DORSETT’S ABILITY to juggle an intense schedule is one that led her to success in her academics, career, motherhood and even the pageant circuit.

Dorsett (above) completed an associate degree at Lake Land College in December 2010, just one year after graduating from high school thanks to the dual-credit program. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Indiana State University.

Winning the Mrs. Indiana America title in 2019, Dorsett competed for the Mrs. America title in Las Vegas, Nevada while raising her two children and working toward a master’s degree. Then in May of 2020, she earned a master’s degree in clinical mental health and addictions counseling from Indiana Wesleyan University, having graduated with a 3.98 GPA despite the challenges presented by COVID-19.

“It was a crazy busy time, but I wouldn’t change it for the world,” Dorsett said.

Dorsett is now the interim clinical director and addictions therapist at a new in-patient addiction facility called Hickory Treatment Center in Rockville, Indiana. In describing how she got to where she is, Dorsett attributed much of her success to Lake Land College.

“Without Lake Land College I wouldn’t have been as successful as I was,” Dorsett said. “Every single person there made it known that they wanted me to succeed. For me, it was a perfect transition and a great way to get my feet wet in the adult world.”

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BRYSON CUTTS GRADUATED from Lake Land College in May 2020. Though his last semester suddenly transitioned to a virtual format when COVID-19 began to spread across the world, Cutts (below) said he did not let the virus or the virtual environment slow him down.

“I have always been really driven in my studies,” Cutts said. “I was able to get my work done early most of the time, because I could work at my own pace.”

During his time at Lake Land, Cutts said his favorite experiences were his Anatomy & Physiology classes with Ikemefuna “Ike” Nwosu, division chair math & science/bioscience instructor, and tutoring for Anatomy & Physiology and Microbiology.

“Ike was great,” Cutts said. “He guided me to academic success. He had a really big impact on where I am now.”

Having continued his education even amid the pandemic, Cutts is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree at Lakeview College of Nursing in Danville, Illinois. Rather than letting the coronavirus hinder him, Cutts said the situation has opened his eyes “to the simplest things in life.”

“Taking that time back and not being so busy with everything has really helped me focus on what matters most,” Cutts said.

MICHELE REEDER IS A MOTHER of two who earned an associate degree in Civil Engineering Technology from Lake Land College in May of 2019. Reeder (right) now works in Civil Engineering Program Development at the Illinois Department of Transportation in Effingham.

After job-hunting amid a pandemic, Reeder said the coronavirus has taught her a lesson in patience. Though she did have to wait for it, working for IDOT was something Reeder always knew she wanted to do.

“I applied for the position I have now in December, and because of COVID I didn’t hear back from them until July,” Reeder said. “I had almost given up hope, but now I’m here and I love it.”

With a college education having fallen to the side for years, going to college was initially a “terrifying” notion for Reeder, but after attending Lake Land she said her experience was one she “loved every moment” of. “Without a college education I found myself without a lot of options and being passed up by people who had degrees,” Reeder said. “Even though I had the experience, I did not have a degree to back it up, and Lake Land opened those doors for me.”