Alumni Profile: Lyndsay Wheeles, B.A. Interdisciplinary Studies Early Childhood Education and Family Studies '03

College was slightly different for alumna Lyndsay Wheeles when she attended UAA from 1999-2003. "I basically had to create my own degree plan and get it approved by an advisory committee and the deans," she says.

When Lyndsay decided she wanted to get her degree in early childhood education, UAA wasn't equipped with a degree plan that would suit her needs. "Even though UAA didn't have a degree plan exactly in the field I wanted, I knew I wanted to live and work in Alaska and they were willing to work with me. So, I started the long journey of designing a degree program that would meet my needs."

But like most prospective college students, Lyndsay didn't have the financial support to afford school on her own. "The UA scholars program enabled me to go to college," she says. "It supplied me with the financial support I needed to go to UAA."

When Lyndsay attended school as a freshman, it wasn't the first time she'd been to UAA's campus. As a fifth grader she attended a class with her father, who was going back to college to get his associate's degree. "I went with my dad to one of his speech classes. Between attending his classes and UAA hockey games, I considered myself a Seawolf long before my college years."

Lyndsay said it was her high school teachers who led her to pursue education as a career. "I had excellent teachers at Dimond, and my English teachers, in particular, really inspired me to be like them," Lyndsay says. "So, that's what I wanted to do-teach high school English."

Lyndsay's love for the classroom originally led her to believe that she wanted to teach at the high school level, but it wasn't until she volunteered in the toddler classroom at her church that she realized she wanted to work with young children, who she says "love you no matter what."

When she started doing the homework her UAA professors assigned, Lyndsay knew she made the right decision. "I loved doing the lesson plans, projects and even homework. It didn't feel like work at all. I relished it and was certain that I'd found my calling."

Because of her unique degree situation, Lyndsay had several different professors from different departments who worked with her directly to figure out how to make their fields work best for her purposes. "It was unique and different, but they took their expertise and helped me apply it to my personal educational and career goals."

Creating her own degree plan helped Lyndsay learn to advocate in the community and prepare her for serving as Mrs. Alaska United States 2010. She is currently promoting her platform throughout the year, "Lifelong Impacts of Early Learning" focusing attention on the needs of young children and their families. "The course work I pursued at UAA prepared me for a career not only in the early childhood field, but education and human and family services."

But more importantly Lyndsay was able to put her education to use as a mom. "Every single day I am grateful to have a strong foundation in child development to guide my parenting and help me support my daughters' development," she says.

Lyndsay is beyond active to say the least. She is serving her fifth year as the chair of children's activities for the Governor's Family Picnic Committee, her ninth term as a board member for the Anchorage Association for the Education of Young Children, the head coach for Anchorage's Special Olympics Figure Skating team and also coaches private figure skating lessons.

Lyndsay has been married to her high school sweetheart, Lem, for nearly 10 years and has two daughters Sycely, 5, and Ella, 2.