Lisa Seel
I find myself at a crossroads that I never dreamed that I would be experiencing. I did what I was told would bring me success and financial security. I left a rural steel and coal-mining town in Western Pennsylvania, traveled to Philadelphia, worked my tail off and put myself through not only a bachelor's degree but also two master's degree programs. Following my bachelor's program, my career was stumbled upon at first but ended up being an industry that provided much personnel satisfaction.
I've spent the past 15 years working with urban, disadvantaged, neglected and/or abused children and their families through positions in the fields of foster care, behavioral health and education. During these 15 years, I have worked harder than most to move up the career ladder and up the salary scale. From my meager beginnings as a counselor for emotionally and behaviorally challenged children in Philadelphia, PA at a salary of $15,000 in 1993 to my last position in 2008 as program director of an education program for special needs preschoolers in Chester, PA at a salary of $62,000, I've had to work not only a 40-hour work week but an additional 10-30 hours per week consistently in the evenings and on the weekends just to keep the pace of the work demands. Outside of the long hours, I've struggled with the emotional and physical toll of working with people whose problems and needs seemed insurmountable in a system rot with dysfunction, bureaucracy and lacking of resources.
I found myself at a crossroads in September of 2008 when my employer of 10-years tossed me aside like unwanted junk mail. What I had believe to be meaningful values... dedication, loyalty and commitment to the company... I quickly learned were meaningless. After being employed continuously since I was 12-years-old with a stellar record behind me, I found myself unemployed. Over the last 5 months, since this fateful day, I have focused all of my energy of job hunting. For you see, I am the breadwinner of my family, the stable salary that meets our monthly bills and provides the health insurance for my family members. Without my job, my family's safety and security are now on shaky ground.
To date, I have applied to no less than 240 job ads for positions across a wide range of industries from human services to education to banking to corporate enterprises with no serious leads toward success in securing a position that meets my family's financial and insurance needs. I am finding that the degrees behind me are meaningless. Employers nowadays want a prefect package. They want candidates that fit job descriptions 100 percent. They do not want to train or mentor new employees. They want additional certifications and licenses that I don't have. So, I have found that the degrees that I possess don't mean squat in today's business world unless I can sway the hiring manager into believing that I have the experiences sought to the minute detail. This has been easier said then done. As I stated, 240 applications sent with only a handful of responses that proved to be all dead-ends.
So, I've been left with the question of what to do to solve my current problem for the long term. At this crossroads, I don't want just any job. I've done this before. I want to be able to move my career in a direction to obtain the position that I've desired for sometime but haven't pursued because of my lack of resources. I want to work in a higher education environment in a professional position, which also affords me the opportunity to teach someday in the future.
I have always love learning and would love nothing more than to go back to school. In order to achieve the above stated goal; however, I need to possess a doctorate degree. But life has not been as good to my family and I as I have tried to be to my family and society. With $58,000 in present student loan debit, all of our savings exhausted while we raised my niece and two nephews during a 5-year period when my sister-in-law was drug addicted (2003-2008), a husband whose career is in its infancy due to his need to stay at home for many years prior to this to care for his disabled and now deceased mother (1997-2007), the daily costs of raising our only daughter (2 years old) and one nephew (18 years oold) who is still in our care and our checking account now dwindling to cover our monthly expenses while I've been unemployed, I don't see any foreseeable means of covering the associated costs of returning to school anytime soon without an award such as yours.
Please help me to do this for myself. I've given and sacrificed without want for most of my life. This is the first time that I've put myself out there and asked for help from someone else. Writing this and applying to this contest has taken a great deal of courage. Although I may not have a story as tragic as some other applicants, my desire and need is just as great.
Thank you in advance for your time and consideration. It is greatly appreciated.