Laura Wood takes reins of Panola's local centerMonday, January 22, 2007
Increasing daily course offerings and continuing education classes at Panola College's Marshall Center are a couple of goals that Director Laura Wood has for the campus.
Ms. Wood has been at the head of the Marshall Center for less than six months, having come on board Sept. 1 after Dr. Jeanne Scott retired.
"I was pretty excited," Ms. Wood told The Marshall News Messenger in a recent interview about how she felt when she was informed about the new position. "I knew I had some big shoes to fill. Dr. Scott did an amazing job."
Panola College, where the age of the student is older than the typical student, has a duty to cater to the needs of those who may already have jobs and families, Ms. Wood said.
"They're trying to juggle all that and improve their education," she said of her students.
And Ms. Wood can certainly empathize with juggling.
She is actually the director of the Marshall Center and still holds her position with Panola College as head of the Adult Basic Education Center. Not to mention, her professional activities in Marshall with the Rotary Club, Marshall-Harrison County Literacy Council, GREAT Center Advisory Board member for the east region and an instructor with Parenting with Love & Logic.
To top it all off, Ms. Wood and her husband, Chris Wood, have four children at home: 16-year-old Parker, 10-year-old Darby, 8 1/2-year-old Austen and 5-year-old Joshua.
"A lot of it, I guess, is coordinating everything and just being organized," said Ms. Wood. "...so it's just time management and I had to learn to do things differently and still give attention to the families and their activities because when they're young they need your attention.
"It's just making the best of the time you when you're at have at home," she said.
Ms. Wood is a native of Georgia, but her family moved to Marshall when she was 15. She graduated from Marshall High School in 1985 and continued her education at Texas A&M University in College Station, earning a bachelor's degree in community health education. Most recently, Ms. Wood got a certificate from a yearlong leadership training initiative called CLARA (Consortium Leadership and Renewal Academy).
"I've always wanted to be in a field where I could help people, particularly working with adults," said Ms. Wood.
Ms. Wood has worked at a rehabilitation center in New York, been a family resources specialist in Germany and a social services assistant at a nursing facility.
But she always wanted to come back to Marshall.
"I love it," she said. "Marshall is a great place to raise kids and to work. And it's exciting, I think, with all the growth and development we've been seeing."
In 1999, Ms. Wood returned and became a GED instructor in 2000 before becoming director of the Basic Adult Education Program, which is funded by a grant, a year later.
Now Ms. Wood is prepared for the challenges that come along with her dual directorships and said she wants everyone to know the Marshall Center is available.
"We're here," she said simply. "They are welcome to contact us."
"...I want to help with students with all their needs," she continued. "And help them achieve their goals and the things that they want and the things that they set for themselves."
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