Student finds new passion and purpose at WCC
For Sarah Lally, returning to Washtenaw Community College has been like coming home. She started at the college when she was 18 to pursue a teaching degree. It was after she transferred to a local four-year university that she realized being an educator wasn’t her passion.
“I stopped going to school,” said Lally, who became a manager at a restaurant to make ends meet. “I worked in the food industry for six years before I started to wonder what I was going to do with my life.”
Wanting more than just another job, she turned to WCC to help her figure out her career goals.
Heart for helping
Her longtime love of science, combined with a passion to serve others, led Lally to health care. She entered the honors nursing program at the age of 31 and is currently in her last semester. She is poised to graduate with not only her Nursing Assistant Skills Training Certificate, but also an Associate in Applied Science.
“At WCC the nursing assistant program is a requirement for all nursing students,” Lally said about the program. “It allows you to earn a certificate in addition
to an associate degree. It’s really where you learn all of your basic skills and essentials. It’s amazing the hands-on opportunities students get at WCC that you just don’t get anywhere else.”
Lally will transfer to Eastern Michigan University to finish her studies at the end of the semester.
“I have accomplished so much that I really don’t think I would have been able to do without the support from WCC,” she said. “It’s been an amazing journey that has helped shape me into who I am.”