Kacey Barksdale-Jones
Name: Kacey Barksdale-Jones
High School: Langston Hughes High School
College (Current or Future): Georgia Military College
Major/Intended Major: Biology
Financial Aid Program: Dual Enrollment
What are you going to be when you grow up?
That question is posed to adolescents across the state of Georgia, but few respond back with a researched answer like Kacey Barksdale-Jones.
“I am going to become a dentist,” said the Langston Hughes High School junior. “Kacey Barksdale-Jones, DDS is how my name will appear. I love the idea of helping others with their smile.”
“I am so proud of Kacey and excited for her career choice of becoming a dentist,” said her mother Janise Barksdale. “I am extremely confident that anything Kacey sets her mind to, she’ll accomplish it!”
One of Kacey’s latest accomplishments is acceptance to the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society for earning Dean’s List honors at Georgia Military College. As part of the state’s Dual Enrollment program, she plans to graduate high school with an Associate’s Degree in Biology.
“Taking advantage of the dual enrollment opportunity will save my mom lots of money because I would have taken some of the required credit courses for free whilst attending high school,” said Kacey. “With intentions on earning my DDS, it was ideal for my career trajectory that I acclimate and start attacking my academic workload as soon as possible.”
That workload has included college courses in Public Speaking, Microeconomics, and Human Growth and Development. Kacey is successful now, but her mother positively recalls a moment of stress.
“She and I were excited initially, then she became overwhelmed stating, ‘Mommy, I have ten college assignments due next week and that doesn’t included assignments for high school.’” said Janise, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with her Master’s in Social Work. “I was familiar with being overwhelmed with academic assignments and explained to Kacey that all she needed was a plan.”
That plan started with a slight adjustment that required Kacey to move each day.
“I was logging online from my bedroom and after a month, I noticed a decrease in my participation during class,” said Kacey. “I decided to take my mom’s advice and go sit at my desk for virtual class. Just making the modification to sit upright shifted my ability to focus and engage.”
Kacey’s ability to manage her time starts with a plan for the week, breaking down times to complete each assignment and adding it to a master calendar to keep everything in order.
“After having a visual and seeing that there is more than enough time to complete the assignments in the time frame she had, I saw the distress slowly fading away,” Janise said. “Once Kacey realized she could manage her schedule accordingly, she has soared like an eagle.”
