For 20-year-old Paul Benjamin, attending college was never something he envisioned for his future.
“When I was in high school, I was pretty much over the idea of going to school. It didn’t feel like the right fit for me,” he recalls.
From a young age, schooling proved to be difficult for Paul, as he was homeschooled by his mother from kindergarten to high school.
“My mom wasn’t really a hands-on teacher, so it was on me to do my work,” he says.
He found himself getting confused during a lot of the lessons his mother was teaching him, sharing that his parents would get frustrated with him when he didn’t understand things.
And whereas his parents thought his difficulties in school were simply a result of a lack of interest, Paul knew it was something different.
“I wanted to do well. But my brain just felt stuck.”
Because of the learning issues that Paul was experiencing, a lot of his assignments fell through the cracks, and he ultimately fell behind, taking more time to complete the certain grade level coursework than the traditional student.
When Paul began his high school curriculum, he was much older than the typical high school-aged student. This discouraged him, as he felt he was ‘too old’ to be in high school. And as a result, Paul dropped out of school.
Shortly before dropping out, Paul’s father decided to get tested for learning disabilities after suspecting that he had some idiosyncrasies of his own. He was diagnosed with dyslexia.
For Paul, everything started to make sense.
After hearing his father’s diagnosis, Paul got tested to see if he had any learning disabilities. “I found out that I had ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and a slow processing unit, making it harder for me to catch on to certain concepts.”
This diagnosis came as no shock to his parents, as they’d suspected something was the cause of Paul’s confusion in school. But whereas Paul was excited to finally know what the cause of his difficulties were, his parents did not react in the same manner.
“They made me figure out how to deal with my disabilities on my own,” he says. “I didn’t really have a helping hand or much of a support system.”
Forced to navigate his newly discovered disabilities by himself, Paul did research on how to move forward. And after months of seeking out resources and teaching himself how to learn successfully, Paul was ready to jump back into education.
He decided to pursue his GED through the Rappahannock Area Regional Education program. And for the first time in his life, he fell in love with education.
“Getting my GED was a great first step for me after my diagnosis because I was able to figure out what learning and studying styles worked for me, and which ones didn’t,” he says.
He also enjoyed having a teacher, something that a typical high school student often takes for granted.
“Since I was homeschooled my whole life, I had only ever been taught by my mom. My GED program was the first time I had a ‘real’ teacher. It felt good to have someone who was actually making sure I was doing what I was supposed to do.”
Paul’s GED journey proved to be a success, and after he graduated from the program, he knew his next step was to attend college.
Today, Paul is finishing up his first year at Germanna, pursuing an associate degree in education with the hope of becoming a teacher in the future.
“I want to be a teacher because I want to help students like me,” he says. “It doesn’t seem like there are many resources or programs put in place for students like me in the K-12 school system, and I want to change that.”
At Germanna, Paul has found his place, as he is active in the College’s Foodie Club and Music Club, and he is a mentee through Germanna’s Mentorship Program.
He attributes his success at Germanna to the help he has received since starting his journey.
“The Office of Accessibility Resources (OAR) has been incredibly helpful for me. With my disabilities, it’s easier for me to take my tests in settings where I’m able to read out loud. OAR allows me to do that, and I really appreciate that. I’m also thankful for my advisor here, who helped me plan out my classes so that my semester wouldn’t be as overwhelming, and my mentor, who is my personal cheerleader.”
With a newfound confidence and support system, Paul is ready to take on the future and make an impact on others. He wants to help change the stigma around learning disabilities and encourage others to see them as a superpower rather than a hindrance.