Campus support helps Casiah Watson face life challenges and come out on top.
When Casiah Watson reflects on how far she has come in the last four years, she can hardly recognize the person she used to be.
“Freshman me vs. me now; they are two totally different people. It’s like night and day,” the Jackson native said.
A high-achieving high school student with a penchant for numbers, Watson chose the University of Mississippi because of the Center for Manufacturing Excellence and because the university offered her the most scholarships.
But before the computer science major could feel settled in her college classes, her life changed forever. During a trip home during the fall semester of her freshman year, she felt lethargic and ill. Her father drove her to the doctor, where she found out she was pregnant.
“I felt extremely ashamed and guilty,” Watson said. “I felt like I let everyone who helped me get to college down. When we got home, my dad reassured me that everything was going to be OK. “People make mistakes, and this was a chance to learn from it.”
Her daughter, Harmony, was born on the first day of the following spring semester. Initially, Watson believed she was going to have to withdraw from Ole Miss. She dropped her classes and considered her next steps.
That’s when her support group stepped up. Her father encouraged her to enroll in online classes instead. Then the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthropy assured her they would hold her scholarship for her, and the CME told her they would save her spot.
“My dad told me that so many people who stop going to college don’t go back, and he wanted me to keep going,” she said
A path had been laid out for her to return, but it was a difficult one. Raising her newborn daughter while adjusting to the rigors of higher education and doing so online were hard enough. COVID-19 separated her further from her support system. She failed a class after mixing up the dates for a final and a pediatric appointment.
Watson felt alone and started seeing a therapist for depression. But she never quit. Through the help of family, her therapist and the Women’s Council, she had a plan to return to school.
Her dad offered to watch Harmony, but Watson insisted on bring her daughter with her when she returned to Oxford in August 2020.
“My first semester, I made a C,” she said. “That was really hard on me and I was questioning if I really wanted to do this. I felt like I didn’t belong, that I wasn’t smart enough. When I had Harmony, I was ashamed and didn’t want to tell anybody. But I knew it was time to own up to it.
“I knew I had to make this work. I had to get my degree, because it was going to secure so many things for us. She became my motivator.”
Watson’s friends helped her babysit while she was in class or working at the IT Helpdesk in Weir Hall to support her family. If a babysitter wasn’t available, her CME professors would let her bring Harmony to class with her.
She took part in the university’s Improving Mississippi Persistence and Completion Together advising and peer mentoring program, and credits her relationship with success coach Veronica Crawford as a key reason why she has made it this far.
“I’m extremely proud of Casiah for her tenacity and resilience during her time at the university,” Crawford said. “I believe she will do great things in the future and I can’t wait to see who she becomes.”
Through the help of her friends, professors and mentors, Watson caught her stride. She was inducted into Upsilon Pi Epsilon, an international computer science honor society. She was a mentor in UM’s Increasing Minority Access to Graduate Education program.
“I’m extremely proud of Casiah for her tenacity and resilience during her time at the university. I believe she will do great things in the future and I can’t wait to see who she becomes.”
— Veronica Crawford, success coach with Improving Mississippi Persistence and Completion Together
“I remember her first year when she was a bit shy and unsure of herself,” said Mike Gill, professor of practice at the CME. “Casiah really has had quite the journey. I’ve seen her work and grow during the CME experiential classes at industry locations with her CME capstone team. She has so much more confidence now in her abilities and in what value she brings to the table.”
During her junior year, she earned an internship with Memphis-based International Paper, the world’s largest pulp and paper company. She so impressed during her internship that they called early in the fall semester of her senior year to offer her a full-time position after graduation.
“We are so pleased that all of her hard work and dedication has paid off for her in future employment with International Paper,” said Scott Kilpatrick, CME director. “I know that she will make an immediate impact as a servant leader in her professional pursuits due to her technical acumen and her wonderful, warm personality.
“We are extremely proud of Casiah and look forward to watching her do great things in the future.”
As she approaches graduation, Watson is reflecting back on all the nights where she doubted whether she could do this.
“It’s so surreal,” she said. “After Harmony, I didn’t picture this moment ever happening. I couldn’t. I’m still amazed. When I walk across that stage, I am going to be thinking about her because at the end of the day, she is who I am doing this for.
“Looking back at everything I’ve been through, I low-key feel invincible.”
By Jacob Batte, University Marketing & Communications