Meet Our Alumni

BGS graduates measure success in many different ways. Their stories are as diverse as the possibilities the program offers. Here’s a sampling:

The University Continuing Education Association (UCEA) has named Roberto Cruz Outstanding Continuing Education Student for New England. Cruz, a 37-year-old Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) student at the UConn-Hartford campus, will receive his BGS degree in May 2008.

The UCEA award is based on numerous factors: academic excellence; student activities; university involvement; community contributions; employment; and personal and career goals. Cruz carries a challenging academic course load, while maintaining a 3.856 GPA, working full time, and volunteering at Village for Families and Children in Hartford.

When Cruz moved from his native Puerto Rico to New York City in 1988, he was accepted to the Pre-Med program at NYU. Family finances put an end to that dream, but he never gave up. In 1991, he attended Kingsborough Community College (CUNY). Financial demands made him take another hiatus from his education, until he earned a Certificate in Healthcare Administration at NYU in 2001. Cruz returned to college as a full time student in 2005 at Borough of Manhattan Community College (CUNY) where he made the Dean’s List each semester, while working full time. From 2003 to 2006, he also volunteered as an English as a Second Language instructor at the United Senior Center in Brooklyn, teaching senior citizens the basics of English.

He never gave up on his goal of earning a Bachelor’s degree. When he moved to Connecticut in 2006, he enrolled in UConn’s Bachelor of General Studies program.

“After meeting with an advisor at UConn and witnessing its diversity, I had a pretty good idea that this was the place for me,” Cruz said. “The Bachelor of General Studies program gave me the opportunity to combine my prior college credits from various institutions into a program that allowed me to pursue an individualized focus in Healthcare and Urban Studies. I have been fortunate enough to attend classes at both the Storrs and West Hartford campus and I have enjoyed the courses, the professionalism of the faculty, and how welcoming and diverse the student population is.”

Cruz took classes days, evenings and weekends so he could continue to work full time as a Client Services Account Manager at United Health Group. “The courses at UConn have all been optimal and challenging,” he said. “Classes have made me analyze the information learned and apply it to my daily life. I’m not just learning concepts; I’m also finding functionality to what I have learned.”

With his career goal of community based work in a hospital or healthcare center, Cruz’s coursework and experience at UConn will serve him well.  

“I have met great individuals and professionals in that area, and have become more knowledgeable of the healthcare and urban issues that affect our communities,” Cruz said. “My academic advisor Susan Graham-Handley has been by my side all along and has always provided the academic support that I have needed. The Bachelor of General Studies program has given me the necessary tools to start a new career path with a strong and solid platform.”

Donna Jacobson BGS ’07 was 41 when she entered the Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) program at the Avery Point campus. She had earned an associate’s degree at Three Rivers Community College in May 2004 (with a 3.8 G.P.A.) and wanted to continue her education. Jacobson chose the BGS program because she wanted the prestige of a University of Connecticut degree and was impressed with the choice of courses and class schedules, BGS advisors and UConn professors.

“The best parts of the UConn BGS program were the flexibility of the class selections, the professors and the BGS advisors,” Jacobson said. “My professors were understanding and engaging. Dr. Nancy Steenburg, my BGS advisor, did everything she could to assist me. Throughout my experience with the BGS program, she has been my mentor, someone I truly respected and admired.” 

Besides the challenges of balancing work, school, and family responsibilities, Jacobson was injured in two separate automobile accidents while earning her degrees. She lost the ability to walk, to read, and to speak coherently, and suffered from six herniated discs, severe whiplash and traumatic brain injury. Yet her commitment, perseverance, and the faith of her advisor helped her to overcome any obstacles that came her way.

“The times that I wanted to give up, not to drive the distance to school are too many to count,” she said. “Dr. Steenburg had faith in me even when I questioned my own abilities to continue. I did push myself harder than I should have, but to reach a goal at times, an individual has to go beyond the norm.”

Enrolling in the BGS program has helped Jacobson to fulfill two of her dreams: to earn a bachelor’s degree and to further her education with the goal of becoming a scholar.

“I have gone farther and done better than I ever anticipated,” she said. “I was able to fulfill my dream of walking to the podium to receive my bachelor’s degree. Since neither of my parents had the chance to finish high school, this is a very special, personal achievement for me. And, as a result, I was accepted into the UConn Graduate School in History with a graduate assistantship. I can say without a doubt, that the BGS program makes it possible for adults to return to school and achieve their goals.”

Wendy Dupree ’04 dropped out of high school when she was 16 and started working as a nurse’s aide. In 1990, she earned a GED (General Education Diploma), and was a single mom on welfare with a five-year-old daughter when she enrolled as a full-time student in the Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Counseling Program at Northwestern Connecticut Community College in 1994. After graduation from NCCC in 1996, she got a job as a youth counselor at the Connecticut Junior Republic (CJR), a residential clinic for emotionally troubled boys.

She decided to continue her education to increase her earning potential and because of her love of learning. In 1998, she met with Dr. Ken Fuchsman, the Director of the BGS program, and decided that the program was exactly what she needed. She went on to earn her BGS degree at UConn, despite a debilitating injury that left her in chronic pain. Her perseverance was rewarded in October 2004, when The University Continuing Education Association (UCEA) named Dupree UCEA Student of the Year for New England, and in December 2004, when she received her BGS degree with a focus in Human Services. She graduated with a G.P.A. of 3.955 and was inducted into the Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society for Outstanding Academic Achievement.

Michael Bradford ’98 finished up a 10-year stint in the Navy and was working at Electric Boat in Groton when he enrolled in the BGS program. His UConn writing professor encouraged him to submit his work for publication, and the Off-Broadway American Place Theatre produced one of his plays, “Living in the Wind.” The Manhattan Theatre Club awarded him a one-year fellowship, which included a commission to write a play and an award of $10,000. During that fellowship, he wrote “Willie’s Cut and Shine,” which was produced at New York’s Lark Theater.

Bradford currently works as an assistant professor of Dramatic Arts at UConn’s Avery Point campus.

Denise C. Brown ’98 was a high school graduate working at McDonald's when she decided to continue her education. She earned an associate’s degree at Northwestern Connecticut Community College in Winsted, Connecticut and transferred those credits to the BGS program. She chose the health and science focus in the BGS program, and maintained an A average.

Brown scored in the 97.7 percentile on the Dental Admission Test (DAT), and was in the top of her class at the University of Buffalo, School of Dental Medicine. She graduated in May 2003, and continued her education in a postgraduate program in orthodontics in San Francisco.

Murray Williams '96  The BGS Program Helps Former UConn Basketball Player Achieve Two Goals.  When Murray Williams originally attended UConn, academics and basketball both played a key role in his life. His basketball career began in 1988, when the UConn men’s team earned a string of wins at the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). It included the “Dream Season” in 1990, when Tate George – with one second left on the clock – tossed a game winning shot to defeat the Tigers in an NCAA third round game. Despite the breathtaking excitement of that glorious moment, the Huskies lost to Duke in the regional finals and finished the season 31-6.

Although these were heady times for Murray, life got in the way of his academic and basketball careers. He left UConn in 1991 without completing his education: he was just 20 credits short of his bachelor’s degree. It was unfinished business that he couldn’t leave behind.

“My goal in attending the University of Connecticut was to earn my degree, as well as to play basketball,” he said. “So once the basketball part had ended, I had one obligation to fulfill and it was to graduate. To be as far along as I was and to be only about 20 credits short of my degree, it seemed foolish for me not to finish.”

He heard about UConn’s Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) program for returning adult students and enrolled at the Torrington campus in fall 1995. By offering students a choice of day, evening, and weekend classes, the BGS program allowed him to keep working while he finished his degree.

“I really enjoyed the flexibility of the program,” he said. “It allowed me to continue my education as well as continue my employment, which was key. My BGS counselor helped me figure out what I needed to finish my degree and then how to fit that into my employment schedule.”

By spring 1996, he had achieved his goal of graduating by earning a Bachelor of General Studies degree. His next goal was to give back to the community where he grew up. His BGS degree helped him reach that goal by opening the door to a career in social services. He was hired as a Case Manager and promoted to Site Supervisor for Connecticut Outreach – West, a mental health services organization in Northwest Connecticut, where he works in the pilots housing program, finding housing in the community for homeless adults who have mental illness and/or substance abuse problems.

“The BGS program allowed me to be employed in an organization that caters to folks who are in need, who are homeless, who are down and out, who may have psychiatric disabilities,” he said. “The goal is to get them out of homelessness and back into productive lives.”