Inspirational CWU Graduate Double Majors After Serving in Military

Kristin Ashley, holding her Veterans Excellence Award for highest attained GPA. The 2017 CWU graduate double majored with a B.S. in global wine studiesand a B.S. in recreation, tourism, and events with a specialization in tourism management.

All college students deal with adversity on the way to earning their degree, but some have a lot more challenges than just those in the classroom.

One Central Washington University graduate got her start in college much later than most students on campus. Kristin Ashley is not your typical college graduate.

"I deal with stress a lot more productively than some people," Ashley said. "I am more motivated to accomplish and conquer challenges."

She grew up 26 miles outside of Ellensburg, without running water or electricity. Then everything changed when she was 16.

"That's when nine-eleven happened and we had seen the planes fly into the towers," Ashley explained.

That night, she tried to sign up for the draft but was rejected.

"That was very moving for me and I wanted to immediately do something about it," she said.

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