Cedarville Magazine, Spring 2014

She arrived in The Cove with despair written on her face. She was a junior nursing student who, in high school, had boasted a 3.7 grade point average. But today, as she sat before me, tears fell. She was on the verge of failing a class, which would be her first time to fail at anything. I listened to her story and heard familiar themes in her academic challenges. Together we created a simple, customized plan, and she walked out of the office with hope. Two weeks later, with a joyful smile on her face, she returned to say she was pulling up her grade significantly and she was thankful for the guidance and encouragement. Some days, my role in Cedarville’s Academic Enrichment Center is picking souls up off the floor and pointing them to resources that will help them continue and finish strong. If these walls could talk, they would share story after story of God’s work in students’ lives — stories of hope, help, motivation, and academic success. The Cove is here to strengthen students’ skills but also to instill a desire for lifelong learning that they will carry into their lives and careers beyond college. The heart of our mission is to help students realize who God is and what He’s calling them to do in their lives and in their learning. Serving Cedarville students this way just might be the best job in the world. SUPPORTING STUDENTS IN LEARNING AND LIFE by Kim Ahlgrim 22 | Cedarville Magazine