Meet…
Tylar O’Neal, 
a college student who is majoring in Rehabilitation Services and minoring in Psychology at Wright State University. With plans on graduating with her Bachelor’s degree this upcoming winter, she reflects on the obstacles and setbacks she experienced on the path to becoming the first college graduate in her entire family.
Why she’s interesting….Born and raised in Dayton Ohio, O’Neal graduated from Wayne High School in 2011 with a 4.2 GPA. She is the oldest of six and looks to set the academic bar pretty high for the rest of her brothers and sisters.
“Higher education was always the plan for me. Regardless of my circumstance, of what life threw at me, I was going to graduate from college,” said O’Neal.
For O’Neal, who lives with her mother and newborn baby brother, coming up with tuition money was a difficult task. O’Neal worked two jobs with hopes of saving up enough money to afford Sinclair’s tuition out of pocket.
After two years at Sinclair, O’Neal had hopes of transfering to a four-year institution and attaining her Bachelor’s degree.
“I probably filled out around 150 applications that year alone. There was no way I was stopping with my associate degree. If I’m going to do this college thing I’m going all out,” said O’Neal.
During that summer of transitioning to Wright State University, she got a letter informing her that she would be receiving the Paul Lawrence Dunbar Scholarship. This alone would give her $2,500 each year for up to four years for her time at Wright State. In her two years at Wright State, she has received over $9,000 in scholarships and grants. O’Neal said she looks forward to graduating this upcoming winter with little to no debt.
“I feel that this is something very doable for all students,” said O’Neal. “There are tons and tons of scholarships out there that people qualify for and don’t know it. There are websites that help you find money for school and the only thing you have to do is apply for it. My younger brothers and sisters will definitely know about these techniques when it’s their time for college if they choose that route.”
With graduation right around the corner, O’Neal plans to take a short break from college life and start working in her field. She is excited to begin this journey and hopes to get her Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Services the following year.
This hasn’t been a short road at all for O’Neal, and there is still a long journey ahead, but O’Neal said this experience has been gratifying and eye opening.
Adrian White
Reporter