Full-time Student and National Beef Employee Moves MTC Tassel
Moultrie Technical College (MTC) student Maylit Selles gives new meaning to the saying “burning the candle at both ends.” As a full-time day class student in the Medical Assisting program on MTC’s Moultrie campus, she also works the night shift at National Beef, all while trying to master the English language.
Selles, 29, of Moultrie, was born in Cuba and followed her father to the United States five years ago after he settled here on a work visa. Her first two years were spent in California where she began taking classes to learn English.
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Moultrie Technical College Medical Assisting program graduate and full-time National Beef employee Maylit Selles, right, celebrated her graduation with instructor Elizabeth Peace prior to the June 14 ceremony which represented the largest graduating class in the College’s 47-year history. |
Although the language was new to her, the medical field was not. While in Cuba, Selles had already obtained her degree as a registered nurse --- credentials that were not recognized in the U.S. So she had to start over in this country, and a move to Colquitt County and to Moultrie Tech made that possible.
Selles earned her General Educational Development, or GED, diploma through Moultrie Tech three years ago. It took her just three months to pass all of the GED test sections.
She enrolled in MTC’s Medical Assisting program two years ago at the same time she began working at National Beef. Her typical class schedule runs from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., while her work schedule begins at 5:45 p.m. and usually wraps up around midnight.
“It’s been hard for me. I started work and school during the same week. But I knew it was what I wanted,” she says.
Despite the hectic schedule, Selles says her drive for the medical field hasn’t changed. ”I love it. I have a passion for it. Since I was five years old, I have wanted to be a nurse. I grew up with that idea in my mind.”
MTC Medical Assisting instructor Elizabeth Peace says of Selles, “She has worked full time evenings while taking heavy loads each quarter. She is such a caring and loving person that she wins the hearts of all around. Through it all she has smiled, been gracious and always thankful for the opportunity MTC has given her. Maylit Selles is an extraordinary student and should be recognized as such.”
The feelings toward her instructors at Moultrie Tech seem to be mutual. “I appreciate the opportunities and all the help and support. Mrs. Elizabeth Peace and Mrs. Brandy Harrell…they are the best instructors I have had. They made me a part of them, even though I was not from here.”
Selles says she hopes to find a job as a medical assistant in the near future but also has her sights set on continuing her education in the medical field.
She was among hundreds of her fellow MTC graduates Tuesday night at Withers Auditorium in Moultrie, as the College recognized over 450 allied health, business and computers, personal and public service, and technical and industrial program graduates from its four-county service area of Colquitt, Tift, Turner and Worth.
MTC President Tina Anderson congratulated the winter and spring quarter graduating classes of 2011, which represented the largest class of graduates in the College’s 47-year history. MTC Practical Nursing instructor and 2010-2011 Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year award winner Robin Kern led the faculty, staff and graduate processional as the event’s marshal.
MTC Board of Directors member Brinson Brock of South Georgia Banking Company in Ashburn assisted the College's administration in the conferring of awards.
