NORTHWEST NAZARENE UNIVERSITY
Cindy Sellman is a current student in NNU’s accelerated teaching program for Elementary Education. Her experience at NNU has surprised her and surpassed the expectations she had for higher education. With professors who are compassionate and understanding of her rare illness and her family supporting her, Cindy is confident that her NNU experience has changed her life for the better.
NNU: How did you decide to come to NNU?
Cindy: I hadn’t ever thought about NNU, to be honest. I always assumed it was way out of reach for me financially. Ever since I made the decision to finish my degree, I had always just assumed my pathway was to graduate from BSU. It wasn’t until I was finishing my associate degree that I even contemplated NNU. I saw an email regarding the Accelerated program for teaching and I made a call, but didn’t really pursue it until I started to look at the financial aid and scholarships I had qualified for; then it just really all fell into place in a way that I can’t describe.
NNU: What are your future plans?
Cindy: I have always wanted to be a teacher, it was something that was a dream of mine since I was in grade school. I pursued it for a short while when I graduated high school 30 years ago, but life has a way of doing strange things. I had an entire career in construction administration before one of my best friends was diagnosed with cancer and passed away after a very short and tough battle. I recognized that life is short and that tomorrow isn’t promised to us. I knew it was time to find that happiness in my career path that I had always lacked, so I decided to finish my teaching degree.
I am currently part of the Accelerated Certificate in Education program for Elementary Education with a Science endorsement. I started this incredible journey with NNU in the fall of 2020 in the middle of the pandemic. I have found that my experience with every person I have crossed paths with has been an incredible experience and one that I know I wouldn’t have had on the pathway I had previously laid out for me.
NNU: Tell me more about that.
Cindy: I have an illness called Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome or CVS, that is not widely known. When it strikes it can completely sideline me for a week and it comes at times that are unpredictable and usually inconvenient. During my first semester, I had a couple of episodes of CVS which severely impacted my work at school. In the accelerated program, missing 3 days is like missing a week. After my first episode of CVS in 2 years, I immediately reached out to my professors and my advisor. I was met with immediate empathy, was provided an opportunity to catch up with my work and stay on track, and was not penalized for anything that was late. It was an opportunity that was given to me that wouldn’t have been afforded if I had been anywhere else.
NNU: What has your experience been like since coming to NNU?
Cindy: I am so thankful I made the decision to come to NNU. My education is so crucial to my next steps in life, and I know that little eyes at home are watching what is going on and they see how important it is to me. My heart tells me that if I was at another university like I’d originally planned, I would not have the level of understanding that I do here. I am so grateful and appreciative that it makes me work even harder. I was telling my husband today about how grateful I was, and I know he is too. I tell everyone that knows me that this was truly an amazing experience and I know I’m in the right place.
NNU: What do you think your experience would have been like elsewhere?
Cindy: I believe the Christian spirit is very much alive and well at NNU—it brings that true Wesleyan spirit of love and I felt that from my professors. As I was working diligently to catch up on my work, my professors would reach out to send me words of encouragement and express real concern and care about my well-being. I would have been nothing but a name to another university, I wouldn’t feel the care and compassion I have felt from my professors and my advisor here at NNU.
NNU: What would you say to someone considering NNU?
Cindy: I would tell anyone considering NNU to just come. The people are amazing, the educational experience has been incredible, and the small class sizes and the caring faculty are something truly special.
NNU: What haven’t we asked that you think would be valuable for us to know?
Cindy: I grew up here in Nampa and have seen NNU grow and change, but I never considered it an option. I believe something special happened that day I saw the accelerated program. I don’t believe I’m here by accident. I totally believe I was led here to truly fulfill my destiny to be a teacher.
Cindy is on schedule to graduate from the accelerated program in the spring of 2022 with her family and the NNU community cheering her on. She plans to seek a teaching job at a local middle school as a science teacher.
Discover how NNU can become a part of your story. Your future is waiting.