Read about Rena Jackson, a graduate of College of The Albemarle’s (COA) Information Technology program.

Rena Jackson was working at a manufacturing plant in Edenton when the company laid off its entire workforce after deciding to move the operation overseas.

Although this was devastating news to most, Jackson found a promising alternative. Her former employer offered to provide job training to its employees or pay for two years of school. Jackson had always promised herself after her high school graduation that she would continue her education as soon as she could find a way financially. For her, the decision was easy.

The New Jersey native said she had been given a second chance to pursue her education and she was determined not to waste it.

A few days after learning that her job was ending, Jackson attended a career fair on COA’s Edenton-Chowan Campus. She ended up getting a job offer that day, but decided to go COA instead. She had made the decision long before the layoffs, after touring the campus months earlier and meeting the dedicated faculty there. She liked what she saw. “I just had to turn that offer down because I had made that promise,” said Jackson, now a desktop support technician at COA. “I felt it was my destiny.”

Jackson turned all her attention to her studies and turned her dream into a reality at COA. She graduated with an associate degree in Information Technology and one in Computer Programming with a 3.49 grade-point average. She seized the opportunity and continued her education, eventually also earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Information Technology. It wasn’t always easy, she admits, and it put a strain on her financial and personal life. But, it was definitely worth it.

“COA gave me the opportunity,” she said. “I took something negative and turned it into something positive. It was challenging but because I was dedicated to it, it was a piece of cake.”