The Barometer Online

Issue date: 3/12/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Cory Reed Brook Mathis, a third-year business major, feeds Lavender, her 3-month-old baby girl, while trying to work on calculus homework. For Mathis, her daughter is her number-one priority, but she is also fully committed to her schooling.

When Sophia Scott went to get her student ID card, she had her 5-year-old son Michael with her.

"The lady asked me if I wanted him in the picture with me," Scott said. "I said, 'Sure, that would be great.'"

Scott is a 25-year-old general science major in the honors program, working toward medical school with a pharmacy minor.

"Being a single parent is tougher than people think. It is mentally draining," Scott said. "I am not only responsible for my classes, but I am responsible for someone else's development."

Scott is not only a mother and student - she also works two part-time jobs as a receptionist at Riverside Headstart in Albany and at the OSU Women's Center. On top of it all, Scott is also a College of Science senator.

"I take one day at a time," she said.

Scott is not afraid to ask for a hand when she needs it.

"Some people use being a single parent as an excuse," she said. "I try to make sure I am not using it as an excuse to get out of things. There are some days that I want to stay home with Michael and I know that I need to go to class and do my homework."

Scott is just one of the few with the task of being a parent as well as a student.

Of all OSU students, 11 percent are parents, said Eric Karbowski, an OSU student who is also the president of the family housing association and a single father of three.

Brook Mathis, 32, a third-year business major, has first hand experience with raising a baby girl while going to school. Her 3-month-old baby, Lavender, is the pride and joy of her life. "It is not about me anymore," Mathis said. "It is all about her."

Mathis gave birth to Lavender near the end of fall term, but she did not let that stop her from finishing the term strong.

"I gave birth to her on a Thursday," she said. "I was back at school on Monday with my homework done."

Mathis takes Lavender everywhere with her, including to class.

"I have an incredibly good baby," she said. "She usually sleeps through my classes. She is a very mellow, quiet baby, which is not the norm."

If Lavender starts to fuss during class, Mathis rocks her car seat, which usually settles her down. If it doesn't, Mathis steps out of the classroom.

Although Mathis enjoys motherhood, there are a few things that can make life tough, such as breast-feeding on campus.

"There are three different places that I can go breast-feed," she said. "The main place I go is the Women's Center, but there is also the Educational Opportunities Program office and basement of Bexell Hall."

"It is interesting because the men on campus do not seem to care that I breast-feed in front of them," she said. "It is actually the women who have the real problem with it. They are the ones who give me the dirty looks."

Currently, Mathis lives with her mother, who is being supportive; Mathis is grateful for the help.

"When you have a kiddo it is a lot harder to find a roommate," she said. "I am very picky about who I want my daughter around, but I can't just live on my own - it's too expensive."

Mathis is using all of her expenses to pay for Lavender.

"I am trying to save money toward getting a new place, but it is not working well," she said. "It seems like there is more money going out than coming in."

Mathis is using food stamps right now, but she will soon lose half of those because she is a student.

"The government expects that financial aid will be able to support you," she said. "You have to work at least 20 hours a week just to qualify for food stamps. The government aid is not there to help you achieve, it is there to keep you where you are at."

Another student parent, Jodie Lovern, a fisheries and wildlife major, has a unique perspective on her student life. She is a married mother of two.

Her oldest is a 12-year-old girl named Rowan and she also has a 9-year-old boy named Alic who was diagnosed with autism at a young age.

"He is wonderful," Lovern said of Alic.

Although Lovern has been married for 13 years, her husband works full time during the day, so she is responsible for getting the children ready for school in the morning and then getting Alic on and off the bus.

"I have to be home when he leaves on the bus and when he gets off the bus after school," she said. "I have to arrange my classes around him."

There are days when her children have the day off and she does not.

"I take them to school with me on these days," Lovern said. "Most teachers are cool with me bringing my kids to class - however, I occasionally get a teacher who will not let me bring them with me."

This term Lovern had to drop a class because the professor would not let her bring her children to class.

Lovern, like the others, agree it is a hard task to be a parent and a full time student.

"I end up putting off my homework until late," she said. "I usually get my homework done after the kids are in bed. I make it to bed between midnight and 2 a.m. and then I have to get up at seven to see them off to school."

Lovern said being a parent of a special needs child is a delightful challenge all of its own.

"I try to spend time with my kids individually," she said. "My daughter is a member of the OSU Bug Zoo with me and that is her and my time to bond."

Lovern added that the child without the special needs is usually the child that needs more attention and feels neglected.

"I really try to give her extra time," she said.

She said that one of the great things about the OSU campus is the Women's Center.

"Everyone in the Women's Center is wonderful with Alic," she said. "They all fell in love with him when I brought him in."

Scott said being a single parent and student is something that needs to be done with care.

"Your self care needs to come first," Scott said. "If you don't take care of yourself then you will not be able to do everything you are responsible for. Remember to rely on other people when you cannot do something yourself."



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Amanda Robbins, senior reporter

features@dailybarometer, 737-2232

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