Iowa OER is doing something a little different with our blog post for January. This month, we’re featuring a true story about a college student in Iowa.
Brandon is a 31-year-old who has been through more than most. Thanks to the availability of online courses and free open educational resources (OER) at Northeast Iowa Community College, Brandon has made some extraordinary changes in his life. This is his story.
Brandon’s story
Several years ago, Brandon dropped out of high school and became homeless. During this time, he did things that he is not proud of which led to his incarceration. Upon his release, Brandon attained his GED. However, Brandon had a bigger vision for himself: he wanted to do more, be more.
After leaving the penitentiary, Brandon was once again homeless. He stated that at this time he had a decision to make: he could go back down the road that got him in trouble or attend a community college and work to do more. Since he was released from the penitentiary when COVID-19 was impacting the country, Brandon had a lot of anxiety being around people. To get an education while keeping himself safe, he decided to attend Northeast Iowa Community College, where he enrolled in classes in the Business Administration program that were online and used OER.
“I was working two part-time jobs and still struggling to make ends meet. I could not afford the additional expense of textbooks.”
When asked about his experience with courses using free OER for students, Brandon stated, “had they not been OER courses I would not have been able to afford to attend school due to the cost,” as textbooks had been a barrier for him in the past. He shared that he had taken another class prior but failed because he was not able to afford the textbook. Brandon did his best to succeed in the class without a textbook, but he wasn’t able to make it work. “I needed the money for tuition, rent, food, and the internet,” he said. “I was working two part-time jobs and still struggling to make ends meet. I could not afford the additional expense of textbooks.” This struggle continues and Brandon shared that “OER is the only way to go. I will not register for another class that is not OER.”
In January 2021, Brandon started his own business, Tidy Up Lawncare, Powerwashing, and Maintenance in the Dubuque area which now employs one additional full-time and four part-time employees. He does this while continuing to take classes to achieve his goal of completing his AAS in Business Administration. As Brandon shared at the end of his discussion, “OER helped make this possible.”
Brandon’s story highlights the importance of making sure that education is affordable for all our students. Thanks to Kyle Collins, Dean of Instructional Innovation and Design at Northeast Iowa Community College, for interviewing Brandon, and thanks to Brandon for being willing to share his story publicly.