Non-traditional students involved as much as their counterparts

In recent years, the economy has been in a recession, depression or just bad.
Jobs are few, and both the old and new ones require new skills.
To meet these challenges, some non-traditional students are entering Winston-Salem State for the first time or returning to complete a degree.
The non-traditional students or “learners” — 24 years old or older — make up about 30 percent of the enrollment at the University.
Non-traditional students have at least three options: Distant, Evening and Weekend and Traditional Learners.
The Distant courses are taught primarily online.
The Evening and Weekend option is an accelerated program where most of the students work on their degrees in eight-week blocks, instead of the 16 weeks.
This option gives the adult students a chance to earn their degree in four years or less.
The traditional learners comply with “routine” academic curriculum, involving face-to-face instruction.
“Most non-traditional students are full-time and honor students,” said Dr. Esther Powell, director of Non-Traditional Student Services.
“A very high percentage of these students that complete their undergraduate go right in to graduate school,” Powell said.
WSSU’s non-traditional students are involved in many of the same activities as traditional students including community service projects, social events, fundraisers and study abroad programs.
Some have traveled to Africa and France. This year one non-traditional student will be going to Brazil.
All adult students are members of the Non-Traditional Adult Student Organization, developed by Powell.
Adult students become active members when they pay dues in the organization. NASO has about 75 active members.
McDaniels says she tries to encourage non-traditional adult students to join the organization.
“It’s important to belong to an organization,” McDaniels said.
“Being a part of an organization at school shows that you have tenacity because most of us work. We have families, and we’re also involved in the community.”
McDaniels said that participation in a university organization shows people that non-traditional students are not just taking classes.
“It [an active membership] shows that we’ve again pioneered through the process, the same process of a traditional student.”
Royal Grantham said he is a member of NASO is a second degree teaching major from Louisburg, N.C.
Grantham graduated from WSSU in 2005.
“I decided to come back to see if I could do it again,” he said.
“School hasn’t change, but the people, yes. The challenge with school is not actually school. It’s actually trying to survive now that I am going back to school and not working full time.”