“Faced with divorce and needing to support myself on my own at age 51 after being a SAHM for 20 years was daunting because I hadn’t finished my degree years earlier. Life threw me a few curveballs on the way and it just hadn’t happened. I had to move in with my mom, I couldn’t get hired for anything but part-time retail, not enough to live on. After 35 years, I returned to UW-La Crosse to finish the bachelor’s degree I started in 1988. I couldn’t have done that without Pell grants. Education has opened so many doors for me, and I plan to help keep the doors open for those who come after me, and help them succeed in any way I can.”
Tracie Banning
UW-La Crosse
