Called to More

Well, it’s official. I am officially a graduate student at CUNY School of Professional Studies, pursuing my M.A. in Disability Studies! And honestly, I have a lot of feelings about it. I am incredibly excited, but I’m also nervous. Like, really nervous. Starting graduate school is a big deal, and stepping into a program that means so much to me makes it feel even bigger.

My first day of classes is Friday, August 28, and I still have those butterflies in my stomach just thinking about it.

This fall, I’ll be taking two classes: Psychological, Cultural, and Political Aspects of Disability and Leadership in Community & Advocacy Groups. Just reading those course titles gets me excited because they connect so closely to the work I’m already passionate about: disability rights, advocacy, leadership, policy, and creating a world where people with disabilities have the opportunity to live the lives they choose.

And let’s be honest… my plate is already FULL. 😂 Between being a wife and mom, homeschooling my girls, serving on boards and councils, advocating, speaking, modeling, traveling, and all the other craziness that life throws at me, adding graduate school to the mix might sound a little crazy.

But I know this is where God has called me right now.

I don’t know exactly where this degree will take me. I don’t know what opportunities will come from it, what doors will open, or even what challenges I’ll face along the way. But I am excited to find out.

I’m going into this program with something that can’t be taught in a textbook: lived experience. I know what it is like to navigate a world that isn’t always designed with people like me in mind. I know what it feels like to advocate for myself and others. And I know how much work there is still left to do.

Now I get the chance to add education, research, history, policy, and leadership skills to that lived experience. That combination has the potential to be powerful.

There will probably be late nights, early mornings, coffee, and some Red Bulls along the way. There will definitely be moments when I wonder what in the world I was thinking. 😂 There may be assignments that make me question every life choice that led me to graduate school.

But through it all, I’m going to keep reminding myself why I started. I want to learn. I want to grow. I want to become a stronger advocate and leader. I want to better understand the systems we are fighting to change, and I want to use what I learn to help make those systems better.

Most of all, I want to see what God has in store.

So here we go. A new school. A new challenge. A new chapter.

CUNY SPS, here I come!

I’m excited. I’m nervous. I’m probably a little crazy for adding one more thing to my already-full plate. But all glory be to God.

Let’s see what He does with it. ❤️🙏