Polk State Gateway’s 2022 class topped by trailblazers
Polk State Lakeland Gateway to College Collegiate High School’s valedictorian and salutatorian could probably both be described by a single word – trailblazers. Grace Joseph is the first Black female in the school’s history to…
Polk State Lakeland Collegiate’s top students get degrees for free in high school
Taylor Rickey and Laura Burse each began their high school careers elsewhere. Now, they’re leaving Polk State Lakeland Collegiate High School as valedictorian and salutatorian. Rickey and Burse spent their first two high school years…
Polk State graduate’s journey to nursing career started with believing in herself when others already did
As a child, Margarita Garcia felt the odds were stacked against her, preventing her from ever reaching her fullest potential. Her family had emigrated to the U.S., and she worked in the fields with her…
Single mom of five earns Polk State degree after 20+ years
It will be 22 years after she first stepped foot on a college campus that Sheena Blake will have earned her Associate in Arts degree, but the 39-year-old single mother of five is just getting…
Graduating Polk State Education student takes over her kindergarten teacher’s classroom
Myla Bence always knew she wanted to be a teacher, but it is serendipity that led her to taking over her own kindergarten teacher’s classroom at Berkley Charter Elementary, where she secured a job before…
Polk State grad finishes what she started 30 years later
Jennifer Donnal was just a year out of high school when she first stepped foot on campus at Polk State College. Through trials and tribulations, Donnal is leaving the College 30 years later with a…
Polk State College to celebrate 126th commencement on May 5
Polk State College will host its 126th commencement with two ceremonies on Thursday, May 5, at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland, where members of the Spring 2022 Graduating Class will celebrate with their families,…
Young mother and daughter of migrant workers becomes first in her family to achieve degree – a Polk State Bachelor of Science in Nursing
Maricela Morales comes from a family built on a strong work ethic. Her father, from Mexico, went to school only one day in his life before his family needed him to stay on the farm…
Polk State student from Haiti graduating with Criminal Justice degree is inspired to help other immigrants
When Rooloph Rene emigrated from Haiti in 2018, he had four years of law school in his home country under his belt but thought he may have to change career paths in the United States.…
Graduating Polk State Nursing student dedicates degree to sister with rare genetic syndrome
Lorann Pate started her Polk State College journey early as a Chain of Lakes Collegiate High School student, but her calling to become a nurse began even earlier as she has grown up watching her…