Choice College, 470C South Avenue, Spruce Grove, AB | Site Content © Choice College 2007
When the teacher becomes the student…
For Tracie Dickson, the hardest thing about going back to school is juggling her role as a mom with her newfound responsibilities as a student. Previously working as an elementary and junior high teacher in B.C. before moving to Stony Plain in 2002, she never considered that one day, the roles would be reversed and she would be the one back in a classroom again.
Tracie’s decision to go back to school stems from an unfortunately accident back in March 2007. The event played out a bit like a sitcom. After running over to the neighbour’s house to let their dog out, Tracie slipped and fell on a small patch of ice, breaking her foot in four places. Unable to move, she called out for help. At first, no one reacted, thinking the noise was coming from neighbourhood kids playing outside. Finally her son looked out the window and saw her laying in the snow. He nearly bowled over his grandmother to get out the door to help his mom.
Realizing the injury was more than a sprain, an ambulance was called. Another neighbour came over to help and bring blankets to cover Tracie, who in her haste to run over and let the dog out, had not put on a jacket and was only wearing a t-shirt. The chaos continued as her husband pulled up to the house, just as the ambulance was backing in to the driveway. When all was said and done, a simply trek to the neighbour’s house had resulted in surgery on her foot, several pins and a metal plate. Although the foot has healed well, Tracie is left with an injury that will forever cause a lack of mobility in her foot, chronic aches and pain and arthritis.
After the accident, going back to work as a teacher and being on her feet all day was not an option. She began to consider other alternatives. An ad for Choice College in the local newspaper caught her eye, and she decided to investigate the Office Administration program. Timing was again not on her side as she missed the Information Session and the start date for the February enrollment. But, she came in for information anyway, and because of her previous post-secondary experience was given the opportunity to start late. Tracie loved the atmosphere at Choice College and felt compelled to start right away, so with that, she was thrown into her new role as a student.
Throughout the ordeal, her husband of almost 9 years and her two step-sons have been very supportive. Her youngest son even commented how great it was that she was going back to school because now she would know what it was like to go to school all day and have to do homework!
Tracie hopes that her Office Administration certificate will help her to launch a new career as an administrative assistant in a school or human resource setting. She loved working as a teacher, and looks forward to taking on a new role in helping students and staff.
Written By Michelle Kirsch
