By Rich Iacuzio
CCC Journalism Program
BLACKWOOD – Sean Schemelia, a former student of Camden County College, has had a hard time finding himself after high school.
Coming out of Winslow Township High School, Schemelia decided to pursue college in the fall of 2010. CCC was his first choice because, he said, “it was the cheapest option, and it was very close to home.”
Things took a rapid turn for Schemelia when he decided to leave the college.
It wasn’t until the spring of 2011 when Schemelia began to realize that college wasn’t right for him. “Halfway through my second semester, I felt like I was just wasting my time going to college, so I felt it was time for a change,” he said.
That change happened a few days later when he decided to drop out of school. One reason that Schemelia decided to give up school was because of the teachers he had. “One of my English teachers told me that I was crazy,” he said. “I lost most of my confidence after that.” He also mentioned that seeing many failed tests come back to him added to his decision to leave the school. “It just wasn’t working for me,” he said.
After leaving college, Schemelia tried living in New York City. He spent a few weeks at the C squat. A squat is usually an occupied abandoned building, and in this case, it was in New York City. Running out of options, he decided to try to find a home there. “I needed a place to stay, and it seemed to be my best option at the time,” he said.
Once he realized that his new lifestyle wasn’t working for him, he decided to come back home and find a job. Even through all of his struggles, he said he “has no regrets.”
Schemelia, now out of school for a little over a year, has changed his mind about his plans. “I think I need to go back to college,” he said. “I realized I needed to better my life, and pursuing a career is in my best interest.”
Schemelia wants to pursue the arts in college. “I want to go to Philadelphia and get into animation in college,” he said.
He still is undecided on a new college but hasn’t ruled out a return to CCC. “I might give it another go,” he stated.