Centralight

Up close with��� CMU���s first lady Elizabeth Ross BY CYNTHIA J. DRAKE, M.A. ���08 That kind of encouragement and support is something Ross has worked hard to create for CMU students. As chairperson of the Women���s Connection scholarship foundation, she reads dozens of heartwrenching applications from CMU students who are single parents or come from single-parent families. One recent recipient was a single father whose But it was her grandmother house burned down. ���You know how sometimes you ��� a woman from a talk yourself out of going generation that had never experienced divorce ��� who to school?��� Ross says. ���I think it���s very courageous really uplifted her. ���She for adults to go back to told me, ���Baby, you have options,������ Ross remembers school. It���s hard work.��� with a smile. ������You are Ross also is working to create an initiative called First Impressions, which will give new or gently used suits to students preparing for their first job interviews. It���s one more initiative that CMU���s self-described ���hands-on��� first lady is undertaking in order to make a difference for students. You will sometimes catch her lending her voice to accompany a big band or even twirling around a dance floor in a ���Dancing With the Stars��� style competition to raise money for a worthy cause. ���It���s humbling for me to serve as the first lady of Central Michigan University,��� she says. ���I believe in giving, and I believe in serving. Dr. Ross and I both believe in our hearts and souls that it���s about the students, because they are our future.��� BRISBANE For 18 years as a single mom following a divorce, Elizabeth Ross leaned on her family. She worked full-time as a high school teacher and a part-time teacher for evening classes, took out loans and earned a master���s degree, and devoted her attention to her daughter, Joronda ��� for whom she had big dreams. During those busy times, her parents and sister pitched in to babysit when she had to study. Her dad floated her the occasional $20 bill. educated and hold a college degree. You can take care of yourself ��� do what you feel is best for you.��� She really gave me courage and sealed my conviction that I could do this on my own.��� PHOTO BY PEGGY Sometimes you need someone to lean on when times get tough. scholarships Scarves for Ross created a limited edition CMU scarf in order to raise additional funds for the Women���s Connection scholarship foundation. The scarves retail for $80 and half the funds go toward scholarships for students from single-parent families. For more information, call 800-358-6903. centralight spring ���13 7

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