John Kelly, seen here in the Radiography lab at VGCC’s South Campus. (VGCC Photo)
Vance-Granville Community College recently nominated John T. Kelly III of Durham, a student in the college’s Radiography program, for the North Carolina Community College System’s Dallas Herring Achievement Award.
The award was established by the system in 2010 to honor the late Dr. Dallas Herring, the longtime State Board of Education chairman and one of the state’s earliest advocates of community colleges. Each year, the award recognizes a current or former community college student who best embodies Herring’s philosophy of “taking people where they are and carrying them as far as they can go.” In Kelly’s case, VGCC took him from being a hopeful student with big goals to obtaining a degree that will allow him to finally pursue a career that he has always wanted.
Kelly is set to graduate from the VGCC Radiography program in May, bringing to a conclusion a difficult process of determining his career path. A native of Sanford, Kelly earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology in 1993 at UNC-Greensboro. He quickly realized that the degree, by itself, was not going to help him reach his career goals. Kelly became a truck driver and made a good salary, but he was never truly happy. “I realized that I wanted to return to my biology roots, but I felt that what I needed was to learn a trade, to gain skills in a medical specialty,” he said. After much soul-searching, research, reading and support from people at VGCC, the idea of Radiography started “tugging” at him.
Over the course of three years, Kelly prepared financially so that he could go back to school. He also began attending VGCC information sessions and completed a few general education courses at the college. He was eventually accepted into the Radiography program, where he has thrived in his courses, earning Dean’s List honors. Meanwhile, Kelly also made the difficult decision to quit his job in order to concentrate on his studies.
“While this process of going back to school has been quite tough on the family, especially from a financial standpoint, the end result will be more than worth all the sacrifice,” Kelly said. “I also feel that I am setting a great example for our daughter, showing her that hard work is necessary and it is worth the hard work when there is something valuable at the end.”
In addition to going to school full-time and spending time with his family, Kelly volunteers with the Durham Interfaith Hospitality Network, which assists homeless families with food, shelter, and getting back on their feet by helping them find homes and employment.
Bobby Austin, the head of VGCC’s Radiography program, said it has been an honor to have taught a student like Kelly, who has an “an unquenchable thirst for knowledge” and enjoys the whole educational experience. “John is ready to learn every single day and brings to the classroom a feeling of enthusiasm that is contagious for the other students,” Austin said. “He not only wishes to learn everything he can about x-ray, but he appreciates all that we do as instructors to help him reach his goal. His attitude and intelligence reflects well upon himself, the Radiography program and VGCC as a whole.”