July 3, 2003 - The Holland Online Sentinel: Curiosity drives Mike Sheppard to travel to the Gambia with Peace Corps
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July 3, 2003 - The Holland Online Sentinel: Curiosity drives Mike Sheppard to travel to the Gambia with Peace Corps
Curiosity drives Mike Sheppard to travel to the Gambia with Peace Corps
Read and comment on this story from The Holland Online Sentinel on Mike Sheppard who is joing the Peace Corps and going to the Gambia. "One of my friends was with the Peace Corps and I realized I wanted to do something special like that," said Sheppard, 23. He leaves Sunday for the West African nation of Gambia, where he will teach statistics and math to secondary students. "I just want to have an adventure. I don't want to regret not doing it later," he said. His parents are thrilled for him, and agree that this is the best time in his life to take on such an enterprise. I'm going to miss him, but he's out on his own adventure," his mother, Susan Sheppard, said, adding that many of her son's friends haven't been able to find a job. Read the story at:
Curiosity drives man to get five degrees, join Peace Corps*
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Curiosity drives man to get five degrees, join Peace Corps
Most people think graduating from college is tough enough, but when Holland Township resident Mike Sheppard started his studies at Michigan State University, that didn't seem enough challenge.
By NARDY BAEZA BICKEL
Staff writer
Most people think graduating from college is tough enough, but when Holland Township resident Mike Sheppard started his studies at Michigan State University, that didn't seem enough challenge.
Instead, he started to take classes in astronomy and physics to see if he could double major in those subjects. Then, he added math and, later, statistics and astrophysics.
By the time he graduated this year, Sheppard had completed the requirements to receive five degrees: mathematics, statistics and probability, computational math, astronomy and astrophysics, and physics.
Busy as he was trying to complete between seven or eight classes per semester, he took the time to also complete a year as an exchange student at University of Surrey, England, during his sophomore year. While in England, he had another idea.
"One of my friends was with the Peace Corps and I realized I wanted to do something special like that," said Sheppard, 23.
He leaves Sunday for the West African nation of Gambia, where he will teach statistics and math to secondary students.
"I just want to have an adventure. I don't want to regret not doing it later," he said.
His parents are thrilled for him, and agree that this is the best time in his life to take on such an enterprise.
"I'm going to miss him, but he's out on his own adventure," his mother, Susan Sheppard, said, adding that many of her son's friends haven't been able to find a job.
"He has friends that have given up looking for a job," she said. "They tell him, 'At least you know what you're going to be doing the next couple of years.'"
His father, Richard Sheppard, thinks going abroad will give Michael an opportunity to know himself better.
"He'll find what he wants to do in life, either stay in the Peace Corps missionary field or come back and find a teaching job," he said. "He'll find himself over the next two years."
When asked why keeps pushing himself academically and otherwise, his answer is quite simple: Why not?
As he puts it, he's done other crazy things, such as taking 20 credits in one semester (including three graduate classes), walking around a sports track 102 times just because he was bored or sending more than 500 hand-signed letters out in a single day, or even taking a physics final exam with an abacus (he got an 80 percent).
Also, in 2001, he sent "Happy Birthday" postcards to every world leader, congressman and governor, receiving responses from many of them including Spain's King Juan Carlos I, German's Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and South African President Thabo Mbeki.
Sheppard graduated from West Ottawa High School in 1998. According to his parents, he was not the best student but it was his curiosity that drove him. His professors at MSU are witnesses to that.
Michael Frazier, professor of mathematics and associate chairman for the department, said he first met Sheppard when the sophomore enrolled in one of his classes.
"That's unusual because that was an advanced class," Frazier said, adding that he later worked with Sheppard on several projects.
"The great thing about him is he's curious about everything," Frazier said. "What drives him is his own curiosity. He's pretty much self-motivated, self-driven, he's not doing it for somebody else.
"It was never the problem to get him interested, but to keep him focused," he added with a laugh.
Horace Smith, a professor in the department of physics and astronomy at MSU, agreed, adding that Sheppard made some discoveries in the work he presented in his senior thesis on the changing brightness of "pulsating" stars.
"He has a very broad background," Smith said. "Most people find that one degree at the time fully occupies them, he did five.
"He didn't complain. I know he was busy but did everything and finished up on time even though he was doing all the other things. He might manage his time really well."
Sheppard said he's not sure what his life plan will look like when he comes back from Gambia, but he sure expects to enjoy his time there.
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This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Recruitment; COS - The Gambia
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My daughter is interested to do voluntary with the peace corp for at least one or two months, This summer in Costa Rica. Can you send SAP info. Thank you Barbara
Please send info Price, will she have a place to stay and how many people will she share with?
I am Nargiza from Uzbekistan .Now I am in Washington by "ACCELC" program for English teachers.I want to say big thanks to "Peace Corps" for it's great job.I felt the tiny part of this toughest job last year working as TEFL Secondary Coordinator in PST in Tashkent .I liked the job but unfortunately I can't apply this year, as I won the program.I want you to help me to find my teacher and volunteer Marylin Peterson.I've heard that she's been working in California.I'll be very happy if you receive and answer my letter.Thank you again.
Sincerely, Nargiza.
My e-mail: rnargiza77@mail.ru
