Three years: Student completes Beaufort County Early College High School in record time

Lindsay Swain will be the first student at Beaufort County Early College High School to graduate with a high school diploma and two associate’s degrees in only three years. Swain maintained a 4.0 GPA while she graduated with both an Associate in Arts and an Associate in Science from the program that normally takes five years to complete.

The driven student will attend East Carolina University, where she plans to pursue at Bachelor of Sciences in Public Health and in Nutrition. She has been accepted into ECU’s Honors College, which means she will attend tuition-free. Additionally, she was awarded the State Employees Credit Union’s People Helping People Scholarship and the Washington Noon Rotary Scholarship. These scholarships will cover most of her other expenses.

Swain intends to become a pediatric physician’s assistant (PA). She is currently taking a nurse aide class at BCCC so she can start racking up the 1000 clinical hours that she will need to apply to PA school.

“I’ve worked at an afterschool care business for the past year,” she said. She has also been a babysitter for the last five years. “Children capture my heart with their fun and playful attitudes, and when they’re sick, they just aren’t themselves. I wanted to do something to help them regain their spirit.”

During middle school, she learned that she could take online classes through North Carolina Virtual Public Schools (VPS). She continued these online classes through high school so each year she moved ahead of her peers. VPS is often used by homeschoolers and by school districts that do not offer certain classes.

“Lindsay is a determined young lady with a strong work ethic,” said Emily Pake, principal of Beaufort County Early College High School. “She completed five high school credits while she was in middle school and never slowed down once she entered high school.”

She has taken most of her classes online, usually only having a few face-to-face classes per semester. This meant she could do the classwork on her own schedule and focus on volunteer projects, work and extracurricular activities.

“When assignments were posted, I would write in my planner what day I planned to complete which assignment,” she said. “This helped me keep my weeks organized and submit work in a timely manner.”

She would meet with other students to collaborate regularly. “I didn’t think that I would get that with an online class, but I did make connections through the teachers and by reaching out myself.”

Never resting for a moment, Swain attended Summer Ventures in Science and Mathematics at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte where she designed and conducted her own biology experiment. She looked at the effects of different types of milk on the development of a fruit fly, where she found that non-organic milk caused faster development and mutation. Part of her desire to pursue nutrition is her fascination with what our food is made of.

She is passionate about volunteering. As soon as she could, Swain stepped into leadership with Gamma Beta Phi, BCCC’s honor society, serving as secretary. She was also a member of the National Honor Society through BCECHS through which she tutored students in biology. She volunteers at the Beaufort County Animal shelter, where, because of her seniority, she now trains new volunteer. Through the shelter, she even assisted veterinary students with the North Carolina State Feline Spay and Neuter clinics.

“She is a gem who is going to make us all wonderfully proud,” said Dr. Keith Lyon, advisor for Gamma Beta Phi. “Her academic ability and lofty intelligence combine with sharp focus, serene determination, staunch integrity and a winsome personality.”

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, her passion for service, her drive and her love of science have cascaded into a new determination to work on health on a larger level. “Our current situation is what drove me to public health. I’m inspired by stories of humanity and helping others.”

BCCC congratulates Swain on her impressive accomplishment and wishes her success at ECU.