STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

SPONSORED BY:

Sam McCollum first attended Ivy Tech in 2011. At the time he didn’t have a stable home so he was couch surfing. As a result of his chaotic life, in addition to undiagnosed attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder and the fact that he was still coming to grips with his identity, he flunked out. Over the next several years he was on a journey of self-discovery, but it wasn’t until he landed a job at a women’s and children’s recovery center (a program for mothers in recovery) that he realized his calling.

“That was a life-changing experience because I started to learn more about addiction and childhood trauma,” says McCollum. “Once I began learning about the technical aspects of trauma, addiction and other psychological conditions, and how environment impacts those so much, the world busted open for me. I realized that there was nothing wrong with me.”

His manager at the recovery center encouraged McCollum to go back to school to get his degree in counseling. “There are people out there who need