Perimeter Instructor Compelled to Help Students Succeed

Selma Robinson believes that everyone has a story. With more than 30 years of working in the accounting, budget and information systems sectors—and 21 years teaching at Perimeter College as a part-time business instructor—Robinson is keenly aware of how those individual stories can impact a student’s success in the classroom and in life.

Below, she shares a bit about her personal journey and how it and other factors influenced her decision to fund a scholarship for single moms. She also explains the story behind her passion for wanting to see every student succeed and the enduring lessons learned from her mother about giving.

What inspired you to establish a scholarship at Perimeter College?

While teaching part-time during the evenings at the Decatur Campus, I met many outstanding students. One of those students was a young, single mom, trying to get an education to improve her circumstances, to better care for herself and her child. She was a straight A student but started missing class toward the end of the semester. Incidentally, I saw this young lady while out shopping and inquired about her absence from class.  She explained that due to childcare issues, she was not able to continue with the class. It was at that moment that I thought to start a scholarship for single moms, where the tuition would cover other costs besides tuition, such as the cost of childcare during the time the student must go to class, transportation costs, such as bus fare to and from campus, or any other costs associated with school such as the cost of textbooks.

In 2010 after losing my mom, I changed the name of the scholarship to the Susan Robinson Smith Scholarship. She was a single mother who not only encouraged us to help others whenever we saw a need, but she lived her life helping and serving others, whenever she saw a need. My mom was a very generous person who never met a stranger.  She always found a way to share what little we had with anyone who had even less than us or anyone who just needed a little help. It is that spirit of selflessness upon which the scholarship was built.

It is my hope that the scholarship funds will continue to grow to help more and more single parents who are seeking to get an education but just need a little extra help in doing so.

What was your experience like in college? Did you receive help along the way?

I came from a single-parent household with five children, so there wasn’t any money for college. However, my mother instilled within me and my siblings a strong work ethic and a will to succeed. Those valued and cherished skills in addition to encouragement of teachers, professors and kind people that I met along my journey, helped me to achieve my educational goals. To help pay for my undergraduate degree, I worked as a cashier, bagger, cart collector, stocker and grocery store bookkeeper. I also worked as a tutor and faculty assistant. After completing my undergraduate degree, I received an opportunity to work with the United States Department of Education in Washington, D.C.—first as a contractor, then as an accountant and later as a systems accountant. During my time there, I was able to go back to school and earn a Master of Science in Management Information Systems.

Both the part-time and full-time job opportunities I received allowed me to pay for my education. Time management skills played an important role in being able to work and attend school.

What motivates you to work so hard on behalf of Perimeter College students?

I currently teach online. However, in the past and now via online classes, whenever I interact with students, I discover how much they are dealing with, whether it be a student trying to figure out how to make the transition from high school to college, a student with a documented disability or a parent working a full-time job and/or raising a family, all while trying to further their education. Some of the challenges I have witnessed and discovered with many students remind me of what I had to manage to succeed. This realization motivates me to help students in whatever way that I can.  The scholarship is one way I help.

Other ways that I try to help include, making myself available via Webex on the weekends to explain Excel project lab assignments, taking phone calls from students during the late evening hours, because it is the only time the they are available to meet due to work and family obligations, creating PDF files with images and explanations regarding Excel project assignments and sharing them via iCollege e-mail to students with documented disabilities such as hearing impaired. I will do what it takes to ensure that the student is successful in my class.

What would you say to others, at the college, both faculty and staff, to encourage them to give to Perimeter’s Development Fund?

I would encourage others to show empathy toward those who are trying to further their education. You never know what others are enduring while trying to better themselves and their families by pursuing an education or just trying to learn something new. We all have a story.

To make a designated gift to Perimeter College, visit donor.gsu.edu.

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