Living Outside The Lines: She Had A Dream

During high school, she thought she might enjoy a career in physical therapy. Anatomy class forever altered that path though; she was not a fan!

By, Becky J Miller

For as long as I’ve known my husband, he has been a Texas Aggie fan. When our children were born, we naturally indoctrinated them into the culture. There are pictures of them, at very young ages, all decked out in their Aggie apparel. He often joked that the kids could go to any college they wanted, but their college money was going to Texas A&M. 

The kids had little choice but to love the Aggies, which they did, and still do. However, sometime around her junior high years, our daughter set her sights on Baylor. She decided, for some, still unknown, reason Baylor afforded her the best opportunity for an education. Knowing the price tag accompanying a Baylor education, her daddy let her know that she needed to work hard to earn scholarships. 

Work hard she did! Graduating in the top five percent of her high school class guaranteed her admission to any state school in Texas. Baylor, being a private school, was not bound by the promise of other schools. Nonetheless, our baby girl not only achieved admission, she was offered the President’s Scholarship spread out over four years, making tuition costs much more manageable.

During high school, she thought she might enjoy a career in physical therapy. Anatomy class forever altered that path though; she was not a fan! Falling back on her love of math, she focused instead on Accounting. Taking dual credit courses her junior and senior years of high school earned her sufficient credits to enter Baylor as an academic sophomore, decreasing the cost of her education even further.

Baylor’s business program is world renowned, offering an accelerated five-year Master’s program, and boasting 100% job placement for their graduates. Our daughter likes to say she mastered accounting in 4.5 years, which she truly did. Her time at Baylor also afforded her the opportunity to spend three months studying abroad and secured a well-paid internship at Ernst and Young, her firm of choice. As a result of her exemplary internship performance, EY extended her a full-time job offer to begin following her graduation.

Our daughter is in very good company, Baylor boasts some famous and accomplished alumni; Former Texas governor Ann Richards; Comedian Jeff Dunham; Co Author of “2 Fast 2 Furious” and Producer of television shows “Chicago P.D.”, “Chicago Fire” and “Chicago Med”, Michael Brandt; President of our youngest son’s school, Hardin-Simmons University, Eric Bruntmyer; Lt. Governor of Texas 1991 – 1995 Bob Bullock; Editor of People Magazine, Jess Cagle; Olympic Gold Medalist, Michael Johnson; and those are just some highlights. The list is long and impressive.

From our very first campus tour right through to her graduation ceremony, we knew Baylor was the school for her. Perceiving that the campus environment closely mirrored her upbringing brought with it a sense of peace. During the hooding ceremony for her master’s program, the emcee shared the names of the firms where each of the graduates held offers for employment; Chevron, Ernst and Young, KPMG, Deloitte and PWC.  #wow Most of the graduates are under 25 years old and will earn very healthy salaries. 

At her graduation party, the cake was embellished with the words, “You’re a Big Girl Now.” Yet, it is hard to believe her journey is complete. Her dream is now her reality. She is a Baylor Graduate with a Master’s Degree in Accountancy, studying for her CPA, with a successful career awaiting her. 

Until Next Time,

Becky J Miller

“Warrior Princess” 

Becky J Miller is a contributor and is exclusive to SM Corridor News. You can read more of Becky’s columns in Lifestyle.