Meet the Taunton Students
Bay State College’s satellite location offers a rich array of day and evening classes, a deeply committed faculty and diverse body of students. Meet three students and hear about their Taunton experiences.
It took a near-limb-losing injury to get Autumn Gurovich to something she’d always dreamed of: a career in the medical field. “I was working as a fashion designer when I fractured my leg and ended up with such a severe infection that I ultimately needed to have nine inches of someone else’s tibia put in my leg and learn to walk all over again,” she recounts. Gurovich spent a year and a half recuperating from the horrific ordeal—and came away inspired to change careers.
“I had a one-year-old baby at the time, and my PT team taught me how to take care of them at a time when I couldn’t put weight on my leg,” she says of her decision to enroll in Bay State’s Physical Therapist Assistant program. “It meant the world to me, and I knew that I wanted to do something to help people the way that I was helped.”
When Hope Corbett’s youngest child started his senior year of high school, she started joking, “I’m going to pack my bags and go to college with you.” But when a back injury at her job as a certified nursing assistant made her eligible for retraining and Corbett discovered Bay State’s Taunton location, the idea got serious.
Corbett completed the Medical Assistant Program in May of 2018 and has since received her certification. “It was a great fit for me because I wanted to advance to doing more than being someone’s caretaker, but not necessarily become a nurse.”
And she’s not stopping there. Corbett is currently working part-time in Bay State’s Admissions Office while continuing her studies, which currently focus on forensics in criminal justice. “It’s really interesting, and it will also round out my medical field skills because lab testing is a big part of forensics,” she explains. “In five years, I will be well rounded enough to be able to work in every part of a doctor’s office, handling the front desk area where the patient walks in, working in the back with the doctor and being able to handle the billing and coding for lab testing. I love working at Bay State and the classes I’m taking. For me, it’s a place where dreams really do come true.”
Gaelle Esperance’s ability to juggle a job, coursework in healthcare management and finance, and raising kids has earned her a reputation among her teachers as a great student truly able to “do it all.”
Born in Haiti and raised in Boston, Esperance’s work as a certified nursing assistant and then at the Babson Executive Conference Center, fueled her ambition to pursue a career in healthcare. “With my line of work and my experience over the years, I had the chance to think about my life and what I want to do,” explains Esperance. “I chose to major in Healthcare Management because I have always had a passion for hospital settings.”
Getting a bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Management with a minor in Finance while raising three children—Bethsaida, Brandon, and Janelle—wasn’t easy. But Esperance took a pragmatic approach. “I don’t wait until the last minute to do my work,” she says. “I take advantage of the time I have way from my children, especially when they’re sleeping.”
The supportive faculty at Bay State College also helped, adds Esperance. “What I like about Bay State is the team of people who care about the students learning,” she says. “David White, Renae Runnels, Meryle Anderson. All of these people are there for me whenever I have a question or concern.”