Iakwe and thank God for this opportunity! My name is John Zedkaia. I served as the student body president at CMI in 2005-2006. I’ve been an employee of the college since 2006, after I graduated with an Associate in Liberal Arts. To me, then, I thought CMI was the end of my scholastic endeavor. Workforce, here I come! I was eager to go out there and offer my services. I was wrong! I first worked in the Adult Basic Education, or GED, where I taught for 3 ½ years. Later, I transferred within the college under the cooperative research and extension program, best known as the land-grant system. For 8 years, I worked as the 4-H/Youth extension agent, serving youth and adults alike throughout the Marshall Islands, whether at home, in schools, at church, or in communities. In 2018, I transferred out, and I am still at the Upward Bound program today. Part of growing up is adapting to changes to meet demands and needs. Family, the cost of living, and other factors prompted me to adapt to change, make sacrifices, and set milestones for the better. It took years for some sense to sink in, and after 10 years without pursuing higher education, I finally stepped forward and obtained my Bachelor’s degree (in Business Administration) from the University of Maine at Fort Kent in 2016.
After Fort Kent, I felt a desire to go further. A blessing landed me in the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Pacific Master’s Education Program with RMI cohort II. Even during the unprecedented pandemic, I was able to continue my studies and was fortunate to complete my master’s in education in 2021.
Was it hard? No! But I can tell you the thought of it was intimidating. What did I have to do that you can do to succeed? Be optimistic about your measures. Take small steps yourself. Don’t expect opportunity to come knocking on your forehead. You yourself will have to get up and seek it yourself. The voyage has its ups and downs. Just don’t quit! It’s your turn! You never know what lies beyond when you don’t try! You have doubters, and you’ll have supporters, even among those closest to you. Believe you can and you will. If others could, you would! I do wish you the best of luck!