Commuting for Education - Story #1

Commuting for Education

Several Students Losing Time and Money to Reach Graduation Goals

By Tara Hjermstad

Word Count: 671

                College is a luxury that students quickly find out isn’t as easy as it sounds. Whether it is the workload, living away from home or any other sort of re-adjustment, it may come as a struggle to some. For these five students, their major setback is just getting to and from school.

                Commuting to and from school really tests the dedication of these students; each of them driving at least an hour to fulfill their education desires. While living on-campus would work better for each of them, each has their own situation that makes that wish unrealistic.

                Although there isn’t a definite number, there are approximately 4,500 students enrolled at BSU and out of that 4,500, approximately 1,100 live on campus in the resident halls; thus leaving approximately 3,400 students to commute daily, whether it be one block or 100 miles.

                For Jess Gendron, a junior at BSU majoring in Sales, Marketing and Management, has been commuting, for the most part, daily from Walker, which is 80 miles one way from Bemidji. Gendron says that while she doesn’t mind the drive itself too much, actually enjoying time to herself, by the time she goes to and from school, she is out of the “school and studying mode.”  The $60 that she spends a week on gas is inevitable since making the move to Bemidji is out of the question. Her family and work are both in Walker, and she has no intention of uprooting any of that.

                Heather White, a sophomore in the Elementary Education department that’s on her second year of commuting the 80 miles from Walker, does not like the commute one bit.  She chose BSU because they have an “a great education program, and it’s the closest school that offers it,” but cannot afford to move here because she does not want to pull her son from daycare or away from his dad. The $40 per week drive for White is tiring by the end of the day, but she plans on continuing it for another two years until her degree is completed.

                Breah Johnson, also a sophomore in the Elementary Education/Pre-Primary/Special-Education department at BSU, commutes the 80 miles daily, and plans to do so until her degree is completed in another year and a half. Her reasoning behind commuting rather than living in Bemidji is similar to that of Gendron and White; “her family life and work is in Walker. “

                Molly Leacox, a freshman majoring in Social Work, commutes about 100 miles one way from Park Rapids daily. The commute is especially hard for Leacox, because not only does it take time away from her studying and work (about an hour for each), she also loses time with her daughter. While the drive is “tiring,” it also gives her a chance to “brainstorm ideas.” Leacox had already bought a home in Park Rapids before deciding to go to school, and selling her home to move to Bemidji is not in her plans; it seems the $60/week drive will continue for the next three years.

                Dan Etter, a junior majoring in Math Education, makes a 56 mile-a-day commute from the Park Rapids area every day. It costs Etter about $50/week to fill his Toyota Celica, and he loses about 2 ½ hours a day just driving. He chose BSU because it was the closest University that he could drive to, since moving to Bemidji was not an option that Etter could even consider. His “wife and four children rely on him to keep a job,” and commuting is the only way he can do both. He has one year left of this “tiring” drive, but is confident that graduating with his degree will be worth it.

                While commuting is not always practical, it’s sometimes the only realistic option. With the cost of tuition and education going up, that will only add more stress and expenses to the commuters’ load.