I went from poverty to a graduate degree because of public schools and Pell grants. Fuck Trump. - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

piperformissouri.bsky.social • 1 day ago

I went from poverty to a graduate degree because of public schools and Pell grants.

Fuck Trump.

Comments

radios2.bsky.social•1 day ago

Pretty much same.

carpenter22.bsky.social•1 day ago

I got my first degree (a bachelor's) because New York City believed everybody should be able to go to college and only had to pay $68 a term.

krhyme.bsky.social•1 day ago

And I pay tons of taxes. It’s nice to actually have a life that makes this possible

aattraversatto.bsky.social•1 day ago

1. good job!
2. fuck trump

texasippihippie.bsky.social•1 day ago

👏👏👏👏

mlynnet.bsky.social•1 day ago

So did I. Engineer here. Female Engineer!
Fuck the mushroom dick blow hard.

vihuela.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same for me. And of course my graduate degrees were both on a federal NIH grant. It’s killing me that people in training now are dealing with this.

thetimchannel.bsky.social•1 day ago

I took an academic scholarship from Jackson State University which gave me critical perspective on American race relations. I shot hoops, smoked weed and sipped 40 ounce malt liquor while classmates pointed out the bullet holes on campus buildings. Four dead in Ohio got a CSNY song.

robthemillenial.bsky.social•1 day ago

I didn't have pell grants. I had student loans and it took me 13 years to get my associates. They don't understand how hard people work to get an education. Which is why I supported loan forgiveness. Yes, I paid out of pocket but why make someone go through what I had to?

hkothe.bsky.social•1 day ago

Especially when a number of them have been scammed by those for profit “universities”. Could not agree more!

dreamblu.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same.

bobbruns.bsky.social•1 day ago

Great story! We need more of these.

chriscat.bsky.social•1 day ago

I wouldn't have my doctorate today if not for the public education I got in a rural school district. Now I'm on the school board of a rural school district to give back. A woman's greatest asset is an education.

electricdonkey.blue•15 hours ago

Fantastic for you Jess. Love that ambition. Hope these ladders survive the fascists.

charva42.bsky.social•1 day ago

I think the point is to keep people like you from doing what you did. The cruelty is the point.

I’m glad you’re being a voice for what’s possible.

winwinseattle.bsky.social•1 day ago

Business degree from MSU funded by student loans paid back in full, Pell grants and work study. 38 years so far of solid earnings and the associated fair taxes I have paid make it one of the best investments America could have made.
Now, they only want the children of the rich to enjoy an education

maureenmaine.bsky.social•1 day ago

I did also. i was fortunate in the 70s, CETA was a program for poor children and we were paid minimum wage, worked through school to help mum who was disabled, went to community college and university as a single parent and got pell grants also. Fuck Trump is right.

fifthdentist.bsky.social•1 day ago

To conservatives, that's the problem. You got out of poverty. You violated their precious hierarchies.

brettmccabe.bsky.social•1 day ago

Pell Grant here!

Plus, a woman named Laverne Noyes left some of her estate for scholarships for people from my town.

We all do better when we all try and do better.

zen1924.bsky.social•1 day ago

Ditto!

sergechorny.bsky.social•15 hours ago

Public education makes America great.

robertm700.bsky.social•1 day ago

Public schools all the way. Bachelor’s and Masters of Engineering. Paid my own way, but it was cheap in the 1970s.

malena.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too! Our public education system used to be the envy of the world but Republicans have attacked it again and again through the years. Nothing however has been at this level. This is pure insanity!

cdnhelp.bsky.social•1 day ago

And working your ass off too. Nothing is ever free but for the opportunity and desire 😷💪

hummingbirdfood.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same!!! First generation college graduate here. Pell grants, Medicaid and WIC helped me become a healthcare professional and business owner.

snowelf893.bsky.social•1 day ago

🙌🏻 Same here—networking degree and now I’m an IT Director. (Also as single mom) I will never stop fighting for others to have the same opportunities we did!!

satyrdaze.bsky.social•1 day ago

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melaniemac73.bsky.social•1 day ago

Amen

hkothe.bsky.social•1 day ago

I made it through grad school, as a single mom, because of a Pell grant.

kalavender.bsky.social•1 day ago

My kids utilized Pell grants also.

So yes, Fuck Trump.

kimo781.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too.

damanonthestreet.bsky.social•1 day ago

Yeah, but can you do 100 pull-ups, shirtless in jeans like RFK Jr? HUHNH???????

shellysh.bsky.social•1 day ago

Amen, sister! Struggled through single motherhood afraid to make use of social safety nets due to childhood indoctrination of shame. Working on my PhD in leadership with the help of student loans that I will die trying to pay off, and juggling two jobs. Proud to model determination.

timharbert.bsky.social•1 day ago

the rich don't want educated people. education is for their kids only. someone has to manage the significant inheritance and manage the family offices. the bottom 90% be damned.

mannedaniels.bsky.social•1 day ago

They want Americans poor and ignorant so they can manipulate and exploit them. They long for the days of sharecroppers, miners, and the company store. They want to take us back to the days of "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair.

grammyk14.bsky.social•1 day ago

Ok, I love you! What did you run for, did I vote for you.......maybe you aren't my district.........unfortunately, my congressman is Mark Alford, I think he brought armed guards to his town hall!

radiantshrub.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too.

catjoe.bsky.social•1 day ago

💙🐈‍⬛🐈💙

You and me both! It is a sad day and unfortunately this will affect a generation! Even if we stopped Trump right now, it would take many years to find and correct all the damage.

str8grandmother.bsky.social•1 day ago

Proud of ya Jess, proud of ya.
Elon Musk will never give anyone a hand up only a boot in your face.

darnocbs.bsky.social•1 day ago

Recalling my Southern MO upbringing..., "Somethin' wrong with that boy."

anclejr.bsky.social•1 day ago

We used that in MS, too

h20toad.bsky.social•1 day ago

My mom went from being divorced with a toddler to a college graduate and manager of a 23M retail store because she received government assistance. Her best friend was in the same boat and became an engineer. Invest in people.

drnemo1.bsky.social•1 day ago

Absolutely- same case for myself and 2 siblings - 2 MDs and a DDS

joyfulforfreedom.bsky.social•1 day ago

And your education helped create the cultural separation that has driven us to this moment. Just the nature of humanity. I guess we will never fully escape conflict. ☹️

bssnplyrmom.bsky.social•1 day ago

Hers? Or the fact that we don't invest in EVERYONE'S education in the USA!

sdebriere.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same.

sakaribaby.bsky.social•1 day ago

I totally understand you!!

bethy-b.bsky.social•1 day ago

My daughter was the first in our family to graduate college because of public schools and Pell grants.

m-asterix.bsky.social•1 day ago

Education threatens insecure men!

mauikidsdr.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same but from Kansas, food stamps, public schools, free lunch, Pell grants, national health service corp, Medical Doctor, Pediatrician. >10 years working in a Federally Qualified Health Clinic for kids that are just like me. If I did it they can do it too. I used to feel confident saying that.

rbeagle.bsky.social•1 day ago

Thanks to Pell Grants and other financial support via FAFSA I was able to attend college and have been an educator for 29 and counting years. Public School Proud!

tpl17.bsky.social•22 hours ago

Your success is exactly why the felon is doing everything he can to throw public schools and universities into disarray.

anclejr.bsky.social•1 day ago

If you had yelp reviews for Pell Grants, it would be full of stories like yours. And, yes, Pell Grants got me through, too.

thejenniwren.teamlh.social•1 day ago

Same.

The MFer doesn’t comprehend the importance of education or those in need as the big toddler had everyone do his work for him. A criminal from the start.

nebraskadude.bsky.social•1 day ago

MFer can’t read so he doesn’t see any value in anyone else being able to do it.

thejenniwren.teamlh.social•1 day ago

🔥🔥🔥

tpl17.bsky.social•22 hours ago

MFer DOES know the importance of an education and he has heard the stories about education being the key to success.

He wants everyone uneducated, except for what he wants them to know.

norb12.bsky.social•1 day ago

I was so grateful to receive Pell grants. As a First Gen kid summer and work study jobs weren’t enough to make a dent. I have paid those grants back a thousand times with my work because I was educated.

metacapitalism.bsky.social•1 day ago

Well done.

onebigdog.bsky.social•1 day ago

And that's why they want to stop it.
Only stupid people vote MAGA.

piddles.bsky.social•20 hours ago

Same. FUCK TRUMP.
#resist

katinthefield.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same.

facedamuzk.bsky.social•1 day ago

I can't expect someone to pick themselves up by their bootstraps if you yank their fucking boots.

challmd.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same. Same. Same.

sforgosh.bsky.social•14 hours ago

Anyone with student loans should leave the country and default

garycottingham.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same here. Fuck Trump.

nevadawarrior.bsky.social•21 hours ago

Yes, #FuckTrump #ToiletSquatchy
#BigAssManBaby
#BunkerBitchBoy

reefermadness.bsky.social•1 day ago

He loves the poorly educated

00kjg.bsky.social•1 day ago

Which is exactly why they are doing this - class warfare

phillyshay.bsky.social•1 day ago

same. My Education enabled me to give my children a good life. He doesn’t want anyone not filthy rich to have an opportunity.

lisabenfield.bsky.social•21 hours ago

So did I! I was born and raised in and around the Rolla/Springfield area. As a single parent of three, had it not been for the Pell grant and student loans, my family would never have made it out of the poverty cycle.

debbiedemocrat.bsky.social•1 day ago

💔😭

drsarap.bsky.social•1 day ago

Fuck that guy. My husband is a success story from Missouri because of his public school education. FFA changed his life and he went on to earn a doctorate!

mwplunkett.bsky.social•11 hours ago

I just stopped paying my balance

chuckles-s.bsky.social•1 day ago

That’s not going to get you in his university😂😂

leahcat1197.bsky.social•1 day ago

That’s right. Same

therapistgoneferal.bsky.social•1 day ago

Ditto. I went to Walnut Ridge in Columbus, Ohio in the 90’s - and I graduated head of the honors society with my Master’s degree from University of Dayton.

Fuck Trump.

sunshine-sb.bsky.social•13 hours ago

Same

mansplainmegan.bsky.social•22 hours ago

Same, girl. The only thing separating me from FL minimum wage with no benefits to being a licensed professional providing for my family of 4, are my degrees. Public school followed by Public university. I received Pell grants and just paid off all of my fed loans.
https://open.substack.com/pub/mdixon316/p/i-paid-off-my-student-loans-fair?r=1ojq1g&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

apbamlb1987.bsky.social•1 day ago

And that's exactly what they don't want.

yrnlvr.bsky.social•1 day ago

Ditto.

armstrnd.bsky.social•16 hours ago

Oh I get Lying King!
By trying to dismantle the DOE,
You keep your base a vote ing
For you, because an education makes them see,
How really you are dumb and ignorant,
Smart people see right through your true identity,
Thus you take away their Pell Grants!

armstrnd.bsky.social•17 hours ago

We used them too! Taught middle school science for 36 years.

oldguy56.bsky.social•19 hours ago

One of the greatest accomplishments of America society has been a strong public education system. It has enabled millions to elevate themselves out of poverty. Beyond the individual, it has enabled the level of prosperity our country has enjoyed - until now.

oldguy56.bsky.social•19 hours ago

But today, there are concerted, highly organized attacks from every angle to destroy the system, which for many, has been the great equalizer. If these efforts are not stopped and reversed soon, it will literally destroy the middle class in one generation.

fuqme.bsky.social•1 day ago

Congrats on the hard work! Must feel pretty goodt!

dr-4-freedom.bsky.social•1 day ago

Listening to BBC and just heard diaper don is returning education funds to the states. Course govs in places like ky and ala are excited. Education doesnt exist

diannelou.bsky.social•1 day ago

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balloonatic.bsky.social•1 day ago

Keeping people down one child at at time....

realsporkman.bsky.social•1 day ago

Them: *Exactly*.

chicagoladyrs.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too. I paid it forward by teaching at public universities, training more generations of public ed students. I won’t accept it was all for nothing.

tacosalazar.bsky.social•1 day ago

Don’t worry I’m sure the guy in Missouri’s Congress who thinks it should be legal to marry 12-year-olds will fix it.

irishrock.bsky.social•1 day ago

You are and continue to be an inspiration! Get them!

clemmima.bsky.social•1 day ago

Yep. I have 5 kids. 4 of my kids went to college on a teacher’s salary, food stamps, Pell grants, and Stafford loans after my husband died. Will education be restricted to the rich?

resistanceisnow.bsky.social•1 day ago

Well done you first of all and secondly fucking hate all those miscreants

nannyvicky.bsky.social•1 day ago

Ditto!

towanda01.bsky.social•1 day ago

I have a daughter who graduates from high school in June and I don’t know if she will be able to go to college now. It’s all she talks about. This will break her heart.

kirstinosgood.bsky.social•19 hours ago

You are his target. Every American like you is a threat to his ilk. It’s the reason they’ve targeted education so quickly.

kdub3.bsky.social•15 hours ago

I feel like that’s the point. They want a caste system like India. Too many poor/middle class kids are growing up, getting educated, and challenging the status quo of the wealthy

unionthugging.bsky.social•1 day ago

Porky you always complain please be positive

adrianburt.bsky.social•1 day ago

Andrew Carnegie built 300 libraries in his life because the free education they provided him allowed him to get out of poverty. These days billionaires are destroying free education for the same reason.

thetimchannel.bsky.social•1 day ago

The monied class that I moved about in while living in Germany invested heavily in public parks and the like. I’m sure it was partly tax incentives and partly umwelt that motivated them, along with the legacy of goodwill such acts instill.

adrianburt.bsky.social•16 hours ago

We lowered the corporate tax rate so much that the tax incentives don't matter anymore. But that's not the issue because the money class isn't just not investing in public services they are actively destroying.

thetimchannel.bsky.social•15 hours ago

The solution to the salvation of capitalism and the return to an era where the wealthy were revered is simple. Tax wealth heavily.

adrianburt.bsky.social•14 hours ago

FDR saved capitalism from itself with the New Deal and the creation of the social safety net, something that Karl Marx never predicted, and ever since capitalists have been doing their best to get rid of the things that protect them from themselves.

abigail-adams76.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same

farmersalmanac.bsky.social•15 hours ago

Same. Well a career in teaching, but yeah.

ablake74.bsky.social•22 hours ago

I will not pull the ladder up behind me!

gtjr.bsky.social•1 day ago

Well they don’t want folks like you to do that

reinhardt-dog.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same here!

jveleztello.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same. And the amazing teachers I had.

darbyz.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too...that and scholarships. However, I could not have made it without Pell Grant's, because scholarships weren't as consistent.

trialrun2024.bsky.social•1 day ago

https://substack.com/@ellenmitchell2/note/c-101932968?r=e1g6h

pshene-agent99.bsky.social•1 day ago

As did my husband.

bssnplyrmom.bsky.social•1 day ago

While my daughters would never be considered to have come from poverty, I'd say solidly middle class, and they too are in college today due to their public school education from K-12 here in Philly.

marennick.bsky.social•1 day ago

Which is why he’s abolishing the department.

nancywokeblue.bsky.social•1 day ago

How are home schooled children doing socially? My daughter went to private school until she was in 5th grade when I switched to public schools to make sure she had the whole experience. She needed to be socialized to the whole spectrum of people. She got the foundation, now real life.

milwgyrl.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too. He doesn’t want people to be educated. He wants uneducated followers who can’t think for themselves.

jlhcorley.bsky.social•1 day ago

My father didn’t have indoor plumbing until he was seven years old. I have a bachelor’s and master’s degree.

Fuck Trump.

bilbo8128.bsky.social•1 day ago

I was 5 with a head injury,had to learn EVERYTHING again, public school helped me and my mom find the resources. They helped her through college with grants, gave her an education to earn an income to put me through college and now I have put my daughter.

FUCK YOU TRUMP!

longgoneisback.bsky.social•1 day ago

🎯

melrea.bsky.social•13 hours ago

Me too. Dr Melissa Rea.

notmyvote.bsky.social•1 day ago

I was the first in my family to get a college degree because of Pell grants.

michaeldrlovegrove.bsky.social•1 day ago

💙💪🇺🇸

rabichakra.bsky.social•1 day ago

🙏

oregongraysky.bsky.social•1 day ago

I went from poverty to the first college degree in my family because of public schools, Pell grants, and books from public and school libraries that taught me there were many ways to live life.

wandmconnor.bsky.social•1 day ago

I am where I am today because of immigration laws of the 80s, public education, Pell grants, and student loan forgiveness. Sure, we worked hard too, but I cannot ignore the good fortune I have received as well. I want even better for others.

mkn68.bsky.social•1 day ago

So did I!!! Double fuck trump

quahogsunited.bsky.social•15 hours ago

Next time I see a member of the Pell family, I'll let them know.

grandparj.bsky.social•1 day ago

Amen

dl8807.bsky.social•23 hours ago

Red State douchebags who voted for this don't even realize that they'll be hurt more by the dismantling of the doe than those in blue states.

anewhope10.bsky.social•1 day ago

I agree 💯

soulfire79.bsky.social•1 day ago

That's exactly what they dont want. They want you toiling away for them, having babies (who can serve as their future minions). And they are cool w us dying from preventable illness and disease bc there are plenty of us to exploit. Fuck Trump. Destroy Trump.

kinkeeper.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same
Same
and
Same

djsalter.bsky.social•22 hours ago

Thank you for sharing your truth.
I went from a childhood with an outhouse and no running water to running a very successful business. My family used AFDC benefits for a short time to afford food.
Without safety nets and assistance, I fear many will not be able to improve their lives.

twilighttn.bsky.social•1 day ago

Me too

noel711.bsky.social•1 day ago

trump can't handle educated people, educated women scare the bejesus outta him.. so he's gonna do incredible damage when he can. We are going back to the dark ages.

justpassingthru2.bsky.social•20 hours ago

Which is *exactly* why they want to remove them. *Anything* that allows *anyone* to oppose them, is de facto, a target, legal or not.

forwardtogetherhub.bsky.social•23 hours ago

In 1968, when I started at the University of California, there was NO tuition. Fees were $83/ semester.

My family didn't own a car, or have other financial resources to pay for college. My room/board & books were paid for by grants & loans.

Being poor was NOT an obstacle then & shouldn't be now!

clichejames.bsky.social•9 hours ago

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write1.bsky.social•1 day ago

Pell grants put me through college and I went on to become a police officer for 10 years, and then a writer/journalist. I grew up poor and those grants helped change my life. Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

662tird.bsky.social•1 day ago

And that’s exactly what they want to stop. “Stay in your place peasant”.
The 1% fears for their position the anyone has a chance at success.

kbradcliffe.bsky.social•1 day ago

🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

justmestacieb.bsky.social•1 day ago

Same and same.

sobroquet.bsky.social•1 day ago

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dalrenmar.bsky.social•23 hours ago

Me too Jess.

kateybee1.bsky.social•1 day ago

He's like a bull in a china shop!! Gutting the Dept of Education in this way is RECKLESS AF. But ofc it's intentional. He doesn't everyone to have access to higher education. It's is CRUEL!
Btw -any other parents deal with the MESS that the FAFSA was last year??! They are already understaffed. 🤬🤬