By Cody Nichelson | Here’s a story about Max Doster, a 49-year old U.S. Navy veteran and Georgia Gwinnett College student from Lawrenceville, who overcame time and obstacles to return to college.
Max began college at Western Carolina on a track and field scholarship following his high school graduation in 1985.
Things were going well at first, as Max was pursuing his degree in physical education. But during his second year, Max’s mother started experiencing critical problems. He was unable to focus on classwork, his grades started to slip, and he was placed on academic suspension. Max returned home, picked up a decent paying job and started supporting his ill mother and younger brother. He never returned to Western Carolina to college.
A few years later, after getting married and having their first child, Max’s company, Cope’s Vulcan, relocated to London. He, a machine operator, was left without a job, few raw skills and a long unemployment line. Soon after that, Max welcomed his second child, then experienced a divorce and lost his mother. He was devastated, lonely and in a state of despair. He would also soon become homeless.
Doster, in the Navy
Unsure of where to turn, Max joined the Navy. He was in radar and navigational charter aboard the USS Shreveport, a landing dock ship out of Norfolk. He hurt his back during operations, and after completing seven years in the Navy, was medically discharged following two major back operations for herniated discs.
Over the course of the next few years, he continued dealing with those injuries. And during that time, he re-connected with his high school sweetheart, Pamela James. They married in 2006.
In 2013, after making advances in health, Max decided he would return to school, studying political science. His wife was already attending classes at Georgia Gwinnett College, also in political science. His daughter, India, 22, started when he did, studying criminal justice. Max and India anticipate graduating in the fall of 2017, while Pamela, who works full time for the Post Office Service in Marietta, may take longer.
Max says: “Being a non-traditional student, I appreciate that the GGC professors want to stay in contact with us, even after we are in their classes. They will email and ask how I am doing. Knowing someone is actually thinking of you means a lot.”
Doster, today
As a disabled veteran, Max is able to have his education paid for in full. Although he faced many obstacles along the way, Max has not given up on his dreams and determination to seek the best for his family. The State of Georgia sees him as the perfect portrait of part of the economic future, as it’s projected that by 2025, more than 60 percent of jobs will require a post-secondary credential. Today, less than 45 percent of Georgians are prepared to such a level.
That’s why Gov. Nathan Deal, the University System, Technical College System and the Georgia Student Finance Commission established “Go Back. Move Ahead” — a statewide initiative that makes it easier for adults to return to college by offering an easier enrollment process, more ways to transfer earned credits, flexible course schedules and financial aid resources.
In doing so, the state (and its employers) hope more adults will return to school and finish their degrees, filling a critical workforce need.
Persons interested in learning more about Max’s story or “Go Back. Move Ahead,” go to www.GoBackMoveAhead.org, or contact Rosalind Barnes Fowler at Rosalind.Barnes@usg.edu.
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