Glenwood resident graduates from high school with a college degree
When Sadie Barth of Glenwood Springs registered for classes at Colorado Mountain College, she was still in high school – at home.
“Sadie was homeschooled,” said CMC college counselor Debra Arnold. “This May, Sadie not only graduated from high school but also from CMC with high honors.”
Several years ago, Barth registered as a concurrent enrollment student at CMC, going to classes at Spring Valley and Glenwood Springs while studying to earn her high school diploma. Attending college allowed her to take a broad view of her educational choices.
“I picked the Associate of Arts in part because of the flexibility it offered,” she said. “I knew I wanted to continue my education, but didn’t have enough experience to really know what I wanted to do. I ended up pursuing that degree because a wide variety of classes would count as credit towards it.”
Barth also had new opportunities to learn from and befriend faculty and students.
“I met professors and professionals in a variety of fields and students from varied backgrounds,” she said. “The professors are all friendly, and willing to work with you, your schedule, and your strengths and weaknesses because they want to see you succeed. The small class sizes are valuable because the professor can respond to each student individually and students can get to know each other while they work.”
Barth excelled in the sciences, Arnold said, which grew into her desire to become a nurse. She’s been accepted into CMC’s nursing program and will start this fall.
“We are all very aware in this pandemic who our heroes are and that our front line people risk their lives daily to help others,” Arnold said. “Sadie has the qualities that will make her an amazing nurse. It has been an honor to work with her and her family and to watch her blossom.”