Education played a very important role in my life. As a child, I always enjoyed learning new information. I didn’t always retain the information or use it wisely but I enjoyed soaking up knowledge. In the public school system growing up in Brooklyn, NY my mom sent me to a variety of different schools.

I went to Elementary school in Flatbush, Middle school in Bensonhurst and High school in the Midwood area. I always had good grades in the earlier years until I took the SAT’s and I always knew I wanted to go away to college to get away from NY. Watching shows like The Cosby Show and A Different World sparked the idea of me wanting to go away to school. However, when I got to Baylor University in Waco, Texas it was nothing like what I saw on TV. It really was a different world! 

People always ask me why I went to school in Texas and why Baylor? I tell them I applied to 5 colleges in Texas and Baylor was the one that was not too far away from my dad who lived in Houston but not to close either, lol. I can remember him telling me at a young age repeatedly, (sometimes like a broken record) “A mind was a terrible thing to waste.”

My journey at Baylor was bumpy. I entered on academic probation as a “Jerry’s Kid.” (That’s what students at Baylor affectionately called us, lol) And it’s also a little unknown fact that I didn’t get the GPA I was suppose to obtain during my freshman year which caused me to be kicked out. It was at that point, I was determined to not be a failure because I knew, failure was not an option. I decided to write a petition letter, cut my summer break short, attend summer school and obtain a certain GPA so I could return for my sophomore year. Even with that unexpected setback, I was able to successfully graduate in May 2002.

After a few years of working, I decided to return to school full time, while working full time and also having a part time internship.  And in December 2006, I obtained my Master’s degree in Social Work from SUNY Stony Brook . As I think about all of my accomplishments,  I know none of them would have happened without GOD! It was he who kept me through the ups and downs.

I’m not sure what the future holds regarding my educational journey moving forward… but I know that I would love to be called Dr. Bhola. So I guess you’ll have to continue to follow along to see what happens next!