Newswise — Marian "Maddie'' Rinker '12 became a mother at age 15, but the Halstead, Pa., native did not let it spoil her dreams of attending college.
The 2007 graduate of Blue Ridge High School had always planned on seeking a higher degree, but she was conflicted about how to achieve her educational goals and be a responsible, loving mother at the same time to her son, Gavin, who has cerebral palsy.
An innocent conversation with her high school guidance counselor, though, provided her the information and opportunity she needed to fulfill her first goal. Her advisor had information and an application for a unique program at Misericordia University. The institution's Women with Children program is one of only eight in the country to provide academically eligible single moms the opportunity to attend college full time while living on campus with their children.
"I might be in college, but it wouldn't be full time,'' Maddie readily acknowledges while watching her active son play with a room full of toys at Rosary Hall. "It would be a weekender program or when I could go. And it probably wouldn't be a university, it would be a tech school or a community college.''
Today, Maddie and Gavin are adjusting to the rigors of higher education and their new home-away-from-home in Lake Street's Rosary Hall, which they share with the program's other participants. The white, three story building is modest by modern standards, but the program's supportive structure offers ample guidance and a strong foundation to succeed.
The six women and seven children in the program interact and share household responsibilities in the common living areas like the living room, playroom and kitchen, but they also have individual bedrooms when privacy or a quiet moment warrants.
Gavin and his mother have only been at Misericordia since August, but the active three-year-old with sandy-brown hair has already embraced his new surroundings, pushing Thomas the Train and other train cars around the playroom while seeking to engage his mother in some playtime.
For Maddie, her freshman year has been a learning experience — both in the classroom as a medical imaging major and in her new home. She not only has to juggle a challenging major and adjust to being on her own for the first time as a single mother, she had to acquaint herself with 11 roommates.
"It was tough at first living with the other girls,'' the daughter of Carolyn and Kenneth Rinker says. "It was hard going from being an only child at home to being with five other girls. Everyone is different; everyone has different parenting skills, so that was hard.''
The Women with Children Program was established in 2000 after Sr. Jean Messaros, RSM, vice president for Students Affairs at Misericordia University, reviewed a Luzerne-Lackawanna counties study that showed single mothers were the predominant heads of single-parent households. That report supported similar observations on the Misericordia campus. Students, faculty and staff saw how other single moms struggled with their class work and family obligations.
"My challenges would be a lot greater if I didn't get into the program,'' the 19-year-old states. "I would have to be at home with my parents or in an apartment that would have been government assisted and I wouldn't have the commonality of other people who have been there, done that.''
The eight-year-old program offers single moms the opportunity to earn their bachelor's degree while providing free housing for their children. It also offers significant financial aid, subsidized childcare and a built-in support system that prepares them for life after graduation. The program's goal is to break the cycle of poverty that sometimes ensues when single women raise their children without the benefit of a college education.
"We saw firsthand how single mothers were constantly worrying about the well-being of their children,'' Sr. Jean says today. "The benefit of our program is that they can live on campus and their child is not charged for that room. They know where they are. The program enables the women to not only get their education, but it also introduces their children to the rewarding experiences on a college campus. Our hope is that it will come full circle with their children and they will also attend college.''
The Women with Children program also provides an orientation program and an array of workshops that focus on a successful transition to college, time management and study and life skills. A personal support system between the women and children who reside at Rosary Hall and Sr. Jean and Vicki Austin, the program's director, adds another layer to the program.
Between classes, Maddie earns spending money by acting as a work study for Austin, answering phones, filing paperwork and doing other odds and ends. But sometimes that daily routine is interrupted when she has to take Gavin to a doctor's appointment, which requires the understanding of professors and staff, alike.
"The program has helped me because I see other single parents in the program who are graduating in May,'' says Maddie. "I know if they can do it, I can. All my professors also help because they understand I can't be in class everyday. The academics are very strong. They're not here to baby you, but they're not here to be mean either. They want to see you succeed.
"Every professor I've had so far I've told them that I'm with the Women with Children program. They know what it's like.''
For more information about Misericordia University's Women with Children program, please contact Vicki Austin, director, at (570) 674-6728 or at [email protected] or log on to http://www.misericordia.edu.
Women with Children is supported largely through various fundraisers, including the 3rd annual igourmet.com Fork & the Cork grand tasting event in October. The two-day event features the 1st annual Winemaker's Dinner on Friday, Oct. 10 from 6-9 p.m. at the Westmoreland Club in Wilkes-Barre. The club's culinary team will prepare a five-course menu using the finest gourmet treats from igourmet.com to create an unforgettable menu with innovative and traditional fare. Each course will be expertly paired with premium wines for an unforgettable evening.
The annual grand tasting event is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 11 from 1-4 p.m. on the picturesque grounds of Misericordia University. Participants will experience elegantly paired premium wines, artisan cheeses and culinary treasures from around the world.
For more information about the annual fundraiser, please log on to http://www.forkandthecork.com or http://www.igourmet.com or contact Austin.
Founded and Sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy in 1924, Misericordia University is Luzerne County's first four-year college and offers 30 academic majors on the graduate and undergraduate levels in full and part-time formats.
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