BEREA, Ky. (LEX 18) — Thursday was full of celebration and gratitude for Jody Denny.
All smiles, proudly calling herself a college graduate.
“My very first day, English 101, I came home and cried my eyes out and said I can’t do this. I pushed through it and it got easier," Denny said.
"I went from a 35-year-old in a classroom of 18-year-olds to mentoring kids. Doors just started opening up everywhere.”
The Paint Lick native has reflected a lot since earning her degree from Eastern Kentucky University this spring.
A journey six years in the making, taking six credit hours at a time while balancing life as a wife and mother.
“I didn’t start full time college until about two years ago. I’m not sure that I’m finished honestly. I don’t anybody is ever finished learning," Denny said.
Denny has rededicated herself to the pursuit of education.
That mission showed in some of those who took part in celebrating her, a trio of former teachers.
Betty Arnold, Alice Sparks and Dale Hellard.
“I taught Jody in seventh grade science in middle school," Arnold said.
"She was a breath of fresh air. Always smiling, always happy. You would’ve never know if she’d had a problem.”
“I was Jody’s third grade teacher. I had her in bible school at times and I’m just so proud of her," Sparks said.
“I was her kindergarten teacher. I knew her as a five-year-old," Hellard said.
"She was the little girl who, when I moved around the room, her eyes were always on me.”
These career educators can connect the timeline of Denny's young life.
However, they learned of their students struggles as an adult during yesterday's celebration.
The adversity she faced before getting back on her preferred path.
“I had a disagreement with my AG professor. It caused a lot of heartache. Dropped out of high school after that," Denny said.
"When I was 18 I went completely blind in one eye for nine weeks. When I was 21 I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. I juggled a lot of stuff but that was always in the back of my mind. I didn’t have a college degree and I wanted one.”
Well, now she has what she wanted and then some.
On top of graduating with honors, Denny was given EKU's Senior Student of the Year Award, a significant acknowledgment of the journey she's been on.
“Don’t let someone else determine your value. You have to travel your own path, be your own person, and the decider of what your level of happiness is and what you’ll settle for," Denny said.
Contributing to that happiness for Denny is having her teachers present, those who helped spur her love of learning in the first place.
They feel just as proud of how far she has come.
“I knew the drive and dedication she had to doing a good job," Arnold said.
"Even though she quit several things. I had no problem believing in her.”
“Out of know where here came this support from kindergarten, third grade and middle school and it really meant a lot," Denny said.
