UMO Early Childhood Education Major Wants to Make a Positive Impact
UMO Early Childhood Education Major Wants to Make a Positive Impact
FAYETTEVILLE- Adult learners often have a difficult time finding a college that matches their needs of returning to school while balancing work and family life. Angela Worley of Fayetteville knows firsthand just how challenging the process can be, but she found the perfect match for her education with the University of Mount Olive.
Worley has always been inspired by children and their desire to learn, which led her to work at Highland Learning Center in Fayetteville. Although she loved her job, Worley always had a desire to return to school. Her husband, Kenneth, finally influenced her to pursue an education focused on her love for helping children.
“My husband suggested that I return to college. I had some college courses, but never finished my degree,” explained Worley. “I always wanted to return to school but I was fearful of starting over. Then I heard about Mount Olive, and my counselor told me that they could accept a lot of my previous courses!”
Worley applied to UMO in the summer of 2012 and began her educational journey. At first she was nervous about whether or not she would be able to keep up with all of the assignments. After all, she had been out of school for over 20 years.
“I overcame my fears by praying and trusting that God would help me through it, and He did just that,” she said. “I found motivation for my education in my faith and in helping children learn. In the UMO one-night-a-week program, I am able to manage all aspects of my life. UMO has made my dream of earning a degree into an achievable goal.”
Having worked for the past 20 years with all kinds of children, including special needs children, Worley is excited to gain classroom principles to add to her first hand experiences in a desire to have a positive impact on the future.
“Children are our future generation,” shared Worley. “The making, molding, and shaping of them at an early age determines what our world will be like in the years to come, and I want to be a part of that process. The ECE classes at UMO are geared towards making the classroom environment conducive to learning and including parents in the instructional process for children. These are ideas that I will put to use in my future classroom.”
Worley received her associate’s degree in May of 2014 from UMO and is preparing to graduate wither her bachelor’s degree in ECE in August of 2016. She resides in Fayetteville with her husband, Kenneth, and has two grown children: Laviel and Kenneth, Jr. She is a prison volunteer with Yokefellow Ministries and is an Ordained Elder at Kingdom Impact Global Ministry.
The University of Mount Olive is a private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition with defining Christian values. The University, sponsored by the Convention of Original Free Will Baptists, has locations in Mount Olive, New Bern, Wilmington, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Research Triangle Park, Washington, Jacksonville, and in Smithfield at Johnston Community College. For more information, visit old.umo.edu.
Angela Worley is pictured with some of the children she works with at Highland Learning Center in Fayetteville.