Returning Women Spotlight: Liz Winters

Wed, 15 May 2013 10:58:54 -0400

The Women's Center exists to assist all women in achieving their full potential in education, career and personal life through academic and intellectual growth, professional development and personal empowerment. One of the ways we work to achieve this mission is in our support services and programs for returning women students undergraduate students over the age of 25). The Women’s Center offers meeting space for these students in addition to scholarship opportunities.

Next year we are hoping to launch a mentorship program for returning women students. To help raise awareness about this new pilot program, we’re highlighting some current Returning Women who are a part of the Charlotte W. Newcombe Foundation Scholarship program. If you’re interested in learning more about the Returning Women’s meetings or scholarships, contact us at womens.center@umbc.edu.

Who are you?

I'm Liz Winters, a senior Psychology major. This year I have been part of the Student Veteran's Association, Health Leads and Psi Chi, among other organizations. I'm a married mom of 2, a veteran, a triathlete, and an aspiring marathoner. I plan on being a nurse one day soon.

What benefits have you experienced as a Newcombe Scholar?

Being a Newcombe Scholar has helped me to foster a lasting connection to the Women's Center community that helps support me in academic and personal growth endeavors. My support network includes grad students, undergrads, and staff & faculty mentors in all reaches of campus. The group is comprised of people, like me, who want to succeed and finish strong in various areas of academic study. The tone is overwhelmingly positive, even when we are in the thick of deadlines and coursework pressures. These benefits are invaluable to making my UMBC experience overwhelmingly positive.

What do you wish traditional students knew about being a non-traditional student?

We have more in common than you might think. We may be older, but we can certainly relate to the daily life of a traditional student. We feel the pressure to do well in classes. We wish we had more time to participate in all of the fun campus activities. We want to get out there and enjoy the nice weather. We want to relax and enjoy the weekend, too. Don't let our age be the thing that stops you from getting to know us.

What do you wish the University and Professors knew about being a non-traditional student?

We don't expect preferential treatment based on age or previous professional experience. We may often keep our non-traditional status to ourselves to keep the playing field even. When we chat with you after class about things we might have in common, we are doing it to make connections, not gain favor. Always give us the opportunity to rise to the challenge. Please be willing to mentor and teach us knowing that we will put forth our best effort in order to be better in our studies.

What is one piece of advice you would offer to new non-traditional students at UMBC?

Make UMBC your own, don't be a bystander. Get to know the other students in your classes. They are very smart and talented in the subject matter of your courses, even if they lack confidence sometimes. Get involved on campus in academic organizations and clubs, these connections will be valuable to getting you through to graduation. If you are a parent, your time spent volunteering on campus will be the one of the best examples you can give your kids that will make them see college as something they want to do, too. Have fun, and try not to stress out! When you do get overwhelmed stop by the Women's Center for some tea or yoga, or go to the RAC and do some ZUMBA- do anything! Just be active and get involved!

Update! Liz's Reflections Post-Graduation:

Since graduating with my Bachelor's degree, I have had some time to really process my learning and growing experiences from my Undergraduate work. The Newcombe Scholarships I received while I was finishing my studies afforded me the freedom to pursue a few volunteer and research opportunities I would otherwise not have been able to participate in. With my scholarship, I was able to afford daycare for my preschool-aged daughter a few extra times a week during each semester so that I could conduct research in local Head Start programs, and work with underprivileged patients in a local Baltimore medical clinic.

My time in the medical clinic as a Student Advocate for Health Leads really instilled a sense of Social Justice and activism in me. This experience not only enriched my time at UMBC, but also left a nagging feeling that I could be doing more in my community even after graduation. Some of my best memories of this time came from conversations with other women around campus and at the Women's Center who were returning students (and especially with one in particular who was in Health Leads). Every time I met someone new who showed promise as a Newcombe Scholar, I would encourage her to apply for the Newcombe Scholarship, and explain how I had used it to enrich my study experiences.

My Health Leads experience really stuck with me, and I had a hard time walking away from the program after I graduated. I eventually began to apply for open job positions with Health Leads, and am thrilled to be employed as their Advocate Coordinator for the Mid-Atlantic region. I love my job, and will never forget that it was the Newcombe Scholarship that put me in a position to gain this great experience-- putting me on the path to a wonderfully fulfilling career I never thought possible!

-update from September 2014