Katrina Piatt, left, laughs as she gets a second viewpoint from Johnika Everhart, partnership and outreach specialist, while applying for scholarships Thursday. The Educational Opportunity Center has begun to reach out to veterans, the homeless and foster children who have aged out of the system to provide counseling and information on college admission processes.BY THE NUMBERSSouthern Appalachia Educational Opportunity Center at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga: 2009-10Grant: $263,047Total participants served: 1,052College-ready participants served: 921Number enrolled in a postsecondary education: 491Number in continuing education: 29Total successful outcomes: 520 or 50 percent of participantsSource: U.S. Department of EducationFOR MORE INFORMATION• Call 423-425-1702 or visit www.utc.edu/outreach/educationalopportunitycenter.ABOUT THE PROGRAMThe Educational Opportunity Center provides counseling and information on college admissions to adults who want to enter or continue a program of higher education. The goal is to increase the number of adult participants who enroll in postsecondary education institutions.Source: U.S. Department of Education
After Katrina Piatt graduated from high school almost 20 years ago, she went to college a couple of times, but always dropped out.
“I’ve made a lot of bad life choices,” she said, without saying more.
But several years ago she decided she had to turn things around.
“It was the realization that I wasn’t getting younger,” she said. “I was always going to have the same kinds of jobs, always be in the same economic level, and I wanted to change that for myself.”