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Standing out Print E-mail
Written by Christina Lords   
Monday, 13 October 2008
When most University of Idaho students sit down to register for classes each semester they’re usually only mapping out their own schedule.
When Roxy and Dallas Stinger create their class schedules, they do it for three.
The Stingers, with their 1-year-old daughter Payton, fall into the nontraditional student category on the UI campus.
Because Payton doesn’t go to a childcare provider or have a regular babysitter, the young married couple takes turns between classes to watch her. Creating a schedule without overlapping classes can be tricky, Roxy said.

Full-time family

Both he and Roxy are full-time students who maintain GPAs high enough to make the dean’s list each semester.
“When we stay up late it’s because we’re doing homework,” Dallas said. “Not because we’re staying up late to party.”
Roxy said she tries to utilize online courses to stay on top of her accounting degree.  Most UI faculty and staff have been accommodating to their family situation, she said. If she needs to, Roxy can bring Payton to class most of the time, Roxy said.
The Stingers said they try to be involved in university groups and activities. Roxy is involved in a business club and Dallas’ participates in intramural sports. As a members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Roxy said attending classes at the UI LDS Institute of Religion is also important to her.
“Church is what keeps us sane,” Dallas said.
Other members of the church have similar families and act as a support system, Roxy said.
“We don’t get free time,” Dallas said. “You just try to get things done with every hour that you have.”
Roxy said one of the biggest differences between her lifestyle and that of a traditional student’s is that she keeps to herself and no longer tries to impress anyone.
“We have our own atmosphere,” she said. “I don’t have to worry about trying to fit in anymore … our mindset is completely different.”
The couple found that most UI students respond positively to their family life and the presence of Payton. Most students rush to open doors for Roxy if she has Payton with her, she said.
“I get some weird looks pushing the stroller to campus in the morning,” Dallas said. “But most people are really nice.”

Sharing common ground

Transitioning back into school can be difficult for a nontraditional student.
Dan Wheeler, nontraditional new student orientation intern, said the orientation is specifically tailored to nontraditional and transfer students’ needs.  
“Most nontraditionals aren’t 18 any more,” he said. “They don’t need the excitement and running around that the younger students do. They are more focused on academics.”
The nontraditional orientation is more laid back than the freshman orientation, he said.
Wheeler said nontraditionals face the same challenges and stresses that other college students face.
“They’re worried about things like financial aid, health insurance and VandalWeb issues. They’re not really that different,” he said. “They’re still new students to campus and need that information.”
Certain services are also available to help with the transition, such as options for different family housing on campus and nontraditional student support groups.
The main difference between nontraditional and traditional students, Wheeler said, is more nontraditionals are handling financial stresses on their own.

Aint nothin’ but a number

In July 2002, Pat Pellet quit his job with the U.S. Postal Service, got on his 48-year-old Harley and drove across the country to come to UI.
Pellet, 50, had worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 19 years. Originally from Madison, Wis., he said he couldn’t go to work wearing a uniform anymore—he needed a change. After one year of attending a community college, Pellet sought out a small town school to continue his degree and found UI.
“I drove out on my bike,” he said. “People kept asking me, ‘Where are you going?’ … I told ‘em I got six weeks to get there or get back home.”
Pellet decided to stay.
“It had been so long since I had gone to school,” he said. “I really didn’t know if I could do this. I’m so glad I did the right thing.”
Pellet said he chose to come to UI not only because of the small-town feel but how responsive the university was to his needs.  The professors were accessible, supportive and encouraging, and it made a difference in his comfort level, he said.
Finding an opening for coaching in UI’s Vandal Boxing Club only helped ease the transition, he said. Boxing is a sport Pellet has been involved with for most of his life
Pellet said he goes through the same worries that students younger than him also experience, including the stress of being in a relationship, finding financial stability, maintaining a full-time class load while trying to participate in out-of-class activities.
Pellet holds practice for the boxing team at least three times a week and travels with the team on weekends for boxing bouts.
He said he likes to catch a Vandal game when he can and also hosted a show called “Wake and Bake” on Saturday’s mornings on UI’s student-run radio station, KUOI. He tries to attend as many public speeches that UI and Washington State University host as possible, he said.
Despite his age, Pellet said he doesn’t find it hard to relate to younger students.
“I think this experience is as isolated as you want it to be,” he said. “It’s fun to be around this kind of optimism and energy. It gives me a bounce.”
One of the most common “preconceived notions” he said he has to deal with is younger students assuming that he has “all the answers” or likes to be the leader in group projects.
“If a professor asks a question and there’s no one to answer, students will always turn around to look at me,” he said. “Because I’m old, I’ve got life experience, but it doesn’t mean I know academia. That’s why I’m here.”
Pellet said most students and professors don’t treat him differently. He is not out to impress anyone, and he has made many friends along the way, he said.
“I’m old and fat and kinda broke down, but I’m OK with that,” he said.
He is not out to impress anyone, he said, and he’s made many friends along the way. If people are willing to accept him, he said he’s more than willing to talk to anyone.
After graduating in May with a degree in sociology, Pellet said he is thankful for the opportunity to continue his education and hopes to be accepted into UI’s anthropology graduate program.
“The alternative for me could be that I’d still be at a job I hated or I could be in class discussing things that are really interesting to me,” he said. “… I see myself  (no different). I’m just a student.”
Last Updated ( Monday, 04 May 2009 )
 
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