TMP photo by Kelly Hite • Education isn't an option, foster mom Kim Reynolds says.
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In Kim Reynolds’ home, it’s hard to imagine having the time to read a book, much less finish up homework.
Kim lives in Readyville with her husband Billy, two Pomeranians, two house cats and four foster kids.
It’s a very active household, but Kim, 42, was able to carve out enough time for herself to finally finish her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice with a minor in forensic psychology from Kaplan University in May.
“I had to put myself and my kids on a schedule,” she said.
She would put the younger children to bed between 7-8 at night, then do her schoolwork from 9 p.m.-midnight.
“The boys knew not to bother me unless the house was on fire,” she said with a laugh.
Kim is used to having an active life. She and Billy have taken in more than 50 foster kids in the past six years, and she’s cared for every one of them.
“We found out we couldn’t have a family the traditional way,” Kim said. So she and Billy decided to make a home for some of the “thousands of kids who need homes.”
Right now she has two biological sisters and their cousin, a boy, all under 10 years old. One of her former foster kids, who is in his 20s lives in a garage apartment, helps with the young ones and attends college.
“We still have five more in Florida who still consider us their parents,” Kim said with pride before listing all her grandchildren through former foster kids.
Most of the kids Kim and Billy have given a home were at-risk children who come from abusive, drug-addled homes or straight off the street.
“Most of them don’t know how to exist out of the foster care system,” she said.
Kim wants to combine her new degree and her past experiences and work in crisis intervention with at-risk children and teenagers.
Kim and Billy’s first foster kid was a 15-year-old boy who had run away from all his other homes.
“We didn’t expect him to stay the weekend, but he didn’t leave until he was 19 and finished his (high school) degree,” Kim said.
She told all her foster kids: Education is not an option. It is a necessity for making it in the world.
She made all her foster kids go to high school until they graduated, turned 18 or left the house.
“It’s not just getting the diploma. It’s putting in the effort and finishing what you start,” she said.
“I always told them, ‘You have to get your education.’ … And they were always asking me, ‘Do you have your degree?’ So, I went back,” Kim continued.
Kim went to Kaplan University, an accredited online college that offers a variety of degrees over the Internet.
“There’s no reason why people shouldn’t finish their education now …” she said. “If you have access to a computer, then there’s no reason not to finish your degree.”
Kim enjoyed the flexibility of Kaplan, which allowed her to work and raise her children while working toward her degree. It took her three-and-a-half years, but she did it.
And she’s not going to stop there; she starts work toward a master’s degree in mental health counseling in the fall.
Michelle Willard can be contacted at 615-869-0816 or mwillard@murfreesboropost.com.
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