Working as a waitress through high school, I thought I saved enough money for atl east two years of college. However, even though I was working full-time while I was in college at Bowling Green State University (BGSU), the money I have saved only lasted a year.

The Army Reserves had a program that helped college students with school, so I talked to a recruiter and joined the Army Reserves in December of 1984. As it turned out, not ALL of what the recruiter said was true, and I found myself still struggling for money at the beginning of my sophomore year of college. I had heard about the Reserve Officer's Training Corps (ROTC) from one of my friends, so I applied and received a 3-year ROTC National Scholarship that paid for tuition and books. I continued to work full-time, as I had to pay for my own room, board, car expenses, insureance, and other necessary living expenses.

I graduated cum laude from BGSU in 1984 with a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology. I also received my commission as a Second Lieutenant and a Distinguished Honor Graduate from the ROTC Department. From there, I was accepted into an aviation position in the Ohio Army National Guard. Since there was a two-to-three year wait for flight school, I decided to pursue a Master's Degree in Indsutrial/Organizational Psychology at The University of Akron in Ohio.