Throughout my entire life, my parents have always placed a heavy emphasis on education. Seriously, they’re like obsessed with it. “Knowledge is power, you can do anything with a degree, no one can take away your education…” blah blah blah. Because my own views on education vary quite drastically from those of my parents, a large divide emerged in our household during my formative years.
Don’t get me wrong, I am ALL about learning. However, I have always thought of myself as a student in the 
school of life (not to be confused with the school of hardknocks). In the 4th grade, I considered dropping out of school to join the Mickey Mouse Club. My parents squashed that idea real quick and then I tried to give myself up for adoption (not kidding, it didn’t work out though). Looking back, it was probably for the best because I probably would’ve ended up peaking at 12 and then bunking with Demi Lovato in rehab.
In high school, I decided it would be in my best interest to enroll in Oprah’s Leadership Academy for Girls. Again, my parents were there to crush my dreams, refusing to pay for my airfare to Kenya. In hindsight, it was once again for the best given the whole molestation scandal.
As high school came to a close, it was time to examine my options as far as higher education was concerned. Being a product of upper-middle class America, it was a given that I was going to attend college after successful completion of high school. Like what else was I going to do for the next 4 years? I didn’t have a drug problem (contrary to popular belief) so rehab was out of the question, and I had taken my weight problem into my own hands so fat camp wasn’t an option either, and I wasn’t oil-money rich so I couldn’t just sit around and live off my trust fund. Besides, though my parents and I had never seen eye to eye on education I figured college would at least be a good time, especially because I’d never been to sleep away camp and I felt like it would be really similar to that or Ender’s Game (one of my favorite novels).
I was excited about pursuing a degree in Dance or Theatre at my chosen university, when once again my 
parents came out of the woodwork to crush my dreams. So there I was- needing to choose a major that sounded respectable, but was really just a euphemism for the pursuit of my true destiny (stardom and performance). Then, one night as I was watching Rachel Maddow lean forward on MSNBC it hit me like a ton of Ghiradelli dark chocolate bricks- I would pursue a career in broadcast journalism!
It wasn’t easy (just kidding, it was), but I did it! Finally on graduation eve, I had butterflies in my tummy. I was finally realizing my dreams, once I walked across that stage, I could finally wash my hands clean of the institution of education. Wrong again. Since graduating from college my parents have not gotten off of me about GRADUATE SCHOOL. I mean, really??? 1. I’m not interested 2. I’m busy.
But in an effort to appease my parents once again, I have decided to go back to school- but this time, I’m doing things MY way. For the next 6 weeks, I will be a student at OWN, earning a degree in “Life Class.” OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) is so much more than just a television network. It is a life tool. In one hour of “Master Class,” taught by Professor Diane Sawyer, I learned more about the field of journalism than I did in college as a journalism student. Throughout this intensive 6-week course, I will be chronicling my journey, sharing my class notes, experiences and lessons learned with all of you. Buckle up, because KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!
