Skye Murray was cleaning teeth. She obtained her certification and was knee-deep in patients every day when she realized she had made a mistake and wanted something different for herself. 

Murray had tried a formal college education out of high school before her dental assistant training, but it didn’t pan out for her.

“I spent a semester at KU and honestly, it was wild with all the financial burdens and everything, and I became more focused and overwhelmed with how I was going to pay for college instead of focusing on what I really wanted to learn,” she said.

She heard about the Barton campus at Fort Leavenworth and dipped her toe in the water and the rest is history.

“I told myself I’m just going to take one class, and I immediately fell in love with the institution,” she said. “I loved how the classes were set up. They’re so individualized, classes are smaller here and you get a lot of person-to-person interaction. If I have a question, it’s going to get answered because you’re not in a class of 200 or more.”

Murray credits the staff and an accommodating environment for all types of students as being other benefits of choosing Barton.

“Ms. Fullen is such a rock star and is one of the most hands-on, energetic teachers there is,” she said. “I’ve seen her stay after class multiple times to help her students. Barton also individualizes the experience for everyone. There are people with so many different backgrounds. You have moms with 2 or 3 kids, mothers to be, active military getting ready to deploy and students fresh out of high school.”

Murray said after taking business law classes from Fullen she realized she wants to pursue law school. 

“Ms. Fullen gave such amazing classes about business law, ethics and communication it inspired me and brought out talent I didn’t know I had,” she said. 

Murray’s mother runs a consultation and research group so she is no stranger to what it’s like to start a business but instead of starting her own said she would rather help other companies. 

“I feel like all of this is the stepping stone to me becoming a lawyer,” she said. “I love case analysis and trying to interpret the law and I feel that having a business degree and understanding how a business works and then using that experience to become a corporate lawyer would allow me  to help people in that setting and it would be a very gratifying career.”

For more information, contact Director of Fort Leavenworth Learning Services Erika Jenkins-Moss at (913) 684-9384 or mosse@bartonccc.edu.