GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A Comstock Park mother is going to great lengths to show her daughters how important it is to go to college.
How far is she willing to go? By enrolling herself at Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC), of course!
“I understand how hard it is for young people to follow the advice of someone who doesn’t put their money where their mouth is,” says Cassandra Tiensivu. “That’s when I decided to apply to GRCC and get myself a degree.”
GRCC says Cassandra is pursuing a degree in General Studies. Meanwhile, her daughter Sabrina is studying Business Administration as Juliana embarks on her GRCC journey in the Math, Science and Engineering Academic Pathway.
Cassandra had been a stay-at-home mother since she gave birth to her daughters, according to GRCC. She made the decision to enroll at the school in 2016 following a divorce years prior.
“Part of the reason I went back to school was because I wanted to instill the importance of college and a career so they wouldn’t be in the same position that I found myself,” she explains. “I felt like the luckiest person in the world when I got my acceptance letter from GRCC.”
Balancing school, family and a business – Celestial Kittens, which sells products themed after cats in space – is tough, but the school says Cassandra is only nine credits away from her associate’s degree!
“I know it’s taken me a long time to get a degree but I’m going to get there eventually … I’m not giving up,” she says.
We’re told Cassandra plans to earn more degrees in pre-art and pre-business before studying paleontology at a university.
