Polk State Aerospace student spreads her wings as Winter Haven Regional Airport manager
Whether she’s tending to the needs of nearly 200 pilots, working on $6 million in airport improvement projects, or hosting dozens of hot air balloon aviators on her “days off,” Ashley Udick is successfully filling…
Polk State biology professor enrolls in EMS Program to become better instructor for students, finishes top of his class
Polk State College biology and physiology professor Jeffrey Orasky has taught at the College for nearly seven years and many students from Polk State’s Emergency Medical Services Program have come through his classroom. To learn…
Graduate with disability: Polk State is a godsend for students like me
Like most high school students, graduating felt bittersweet for Hope LaMond, who was nervous about college but eager to gain some freedom. She was no stranger to Polk State College, where at six years old…
Polk State Lakeland Collegiate High School student is heading to MIT
Sergio Perez will receive his Polk State Associate in Arts degree before his high school diploma is even in hand, and once he has both, the first-generation-in-college student is heading to Massachusetts Institute of Technology…
Polk State student is heading to Stetson University’s prestigious Bonner Program
Andrea Gutierrez didn’t always want to go to college, but now she’s heading to Stetson University’s competitive and prestigious Bonner Program with a $40,000 scholarship. A first-generation Mexican-American and the first in her family to…
Artist finds confidence as Polk State College student
Ava Virginia Edmonds has been an artist in one form or another since she can remember. The daughter of an elementary school art teacher and a cartoonist, Edmonds has always received encouragement at home to…
Polk State VP of Institutional Effectiveness, Accreditation & Research has a heart for community, state colleges because they allow students to get education on own terms
Mary Clark has a heart for community and state colleges because they allow students to get their education on their own terms like she did. Clark, who joined Polk State College in March as its…
Polk State Lakeland Gateway to College Collegiate High School alum becomes published author with book embracing culture and diversity
Abisola Adeyemo is always looking for the next challenge, and once she accomplishes it, she seeks out opportunities to share her experiences in hopes of inspiring others. In 2015, she enrolled at Polk State Lakeland…
Dean of Academic Affairs “didn’t know how to go to college,” so he dedicated career to giving students the guidance they need
Nearly a month into his new position as Dean of Academic Affairs on the Polk State College Lakeland Campus, John Glenn already has his finger on the pulse of what students need because “I am…
Single mom overcomes “culture shock” to achieve Polk State degree
Stephanie Cooper-Stewart emigrated from Jamaica in May 2009, leaving behind a good job, her family, and everything she once knew in her home country. After nearly a year of unemployment and becoming a single mother,…