Charlene Maycott, a first-generation college graduate in her family, is living proof that good things come to those who wait. She just didn’t think she’d have to wait 40 years for that to happen.
Maycott, 58 and mother of four, earned associate degrees in communication and psychology from Atlantic Cape Community College in 2022 and 2024, respectively. She’d graduated from high school in Arizona in 1982.
Her story begins that year, when she was 17, shortly after she graduated from Thunderbird High School in Phoenix. She earned a scholarship and registered for classes at nearby Phoenix College, but a family crisis would ultimately alter her plans.
Maycott moved east to spend more time and help care for her ailing grandmother in Villas. She began working as a waitress/hostess in the casinos in Atlantic City, then eventually worked a second job as an administrative assistant while also volunteering as a youth soccer coach in Mullica Township. She has never returned to Phoenix.
“By the time she (my grandmother) passed in 2005 I had gotten married and had four children,” the Hammonton resident said. “Although I wasn’t able to go back to Phoenix, I never gave up on my dream that one day I would go to college. I knew that after my children were older, I would register.”
Fast forward to the summer of 2019. Maycott, then 54, knew it was time to take the step and head back to college. Anticipation soon gave way to nervous trepidation when she began scrolling the pages of the Atlantic Cape website.
“I found myself so nervous that I almost decided to give up the dream,” she said. ” All I could think was how much older I was than college kids. I was petrified that I would look stupid.”
But Maycott began taking classes during the fall 2019 semester and graduated in May 2022 with an associate degree in communication.
She didn’t stop there. She returned to Atlantic Cape for the fall 2022 semester to work toward a degree in psychology; she graduated with it this past May. Along the way she has had to overcome significant personal challenges.
“One of my biggest challenges was being a full-time caregiver to my 82-year-old mother (who died in August), who was blind and had Alzheimer’s, while attending school and working,” said Maycott, who benefitted from the college’s flexible scheduling. “Atlantic Cape has a big selection of online, remote and hybrid classes which made it easier to take care of my mother and earn my degree.”
She loved her time at Atlantic Cape and has no regrets with her decision to go back to college.
“I started at Atlantic Cape because it is affordable and close to home, but once I enrolled, I realized that it is so much more,” she said. “The professors and staff are wonderful and are always here to help you. There is a great selection of classes to choose from, and a wonderfully inclusive and diverse student population too. Atlantic Cape has continually provided me with a way to fulfill my dreams of becoming a college graduate and has shown me that I can be proud of my accomplishments.”
During her five years at Atlantic Cape, Maycott immersed herself in numerous student clubs, such as the Communication Awards Club, Rewrites annual literary/art publication, Atlantic Cape Review student newspaper, Theater Arts Guild and Student Government Association.
As part of Atlantic Cape’s 3+1 partnership agreement with Stockton University, she is currently completing her junior year of studies, which consists of an additional 30 credits that will earn her an associate degree in advanced and continuous studies. She will then finish her senior year at Stockton, beginning with the spring semester.
“At this point in my life, I am proud that I have earned not only one, but two degrees as a first-generation college graduate,” Maycott said. “I am excited about going to Stockton University to earn my bachelor’s degree, but I will always miss Atlantic Cape, which has given me the tools I need to go after my chosen career.”
For more information, visit atlanticcape.edu/onestop.
