Three Unique Paths are All in the Family at IRSC

February 22, 2021 Molly Bartels

For Autumn Beaty, her husband, Jayson, and her aunt, Natalie Carlton, IRSC is a family affair. They’ve all chosen different career paths and IRSC has helped each of them on their unique journey.

Jayson and Autumn Beaty and Natalie Carlton at Memorial Park in downtown Stuart.

Natalie, 44, is in the radiologic technology program and is set to graduate in May 2021. After having a successful career as a professional quilter, Natalie enrolled at IRSC to help with the depression she felt after her children left home. “I was suffering from empty nest syndrome and googled how to stop depression. It said to keep your mind occupied. I thought going to school for a new career would do just that.” Natalie is also dyslexic and found that IRSC’s accessibility services made learning easier for her. “I had a wonderful accessibility counselor who made sure I had the right tools to be successful. Now I’m able to receive my textbooks in a digital form and the computer helps me read at the proper speed. My counselor also made sure I knew what resources were available. The ASC Lab at the Chastain Campus helped me achieve high honors for my AA degree in 2019. They have the best free tutors that are available to all students.”

Autumn, 21, is the co-owner of Strands, and organic hair boutique in Stuart. “I graduated when I was really young and started the IRSC cosmetology program when I was 16. Starting college that young was really overwhelming for me, but the counselors at IRSC were extremely helpful and compassionate.” She completed the cosmetology program in 2016 and plans to start working toward her AS in Accounting Technology in Spring 2021. “I would like to continue as a hairstylist, but I am pursuing an accounting degree as a backup to be able to potentially work from home in the future. I like accounting because I have always enjoyed math and managing finances. And, I like the idea of having the flexibility to work remotely if/ when my husband and I have children.”

“I believe that learning is life-long. Between the pandemic and my husband going back to IRSC for his bachelor’s degree, I have a lot of free time, and I feel that continuing my education with IRSC is the best way I can use that time.”

Jayson, 22, is an IT Support Technician at Cloud Choice Technologies in Jensen Beach. He completed his AS in Computer Information Technology in December 2019 and is now working toward a Bachelors in IT Management and Cyber Security. “I’m in the field already, but if I want to move on, it would really benefit me to get my bachelor’s degree. It would also lead to a pay raise in my current job.”

“IRSC was affordable, had convenient campus locations and a friendly staff. I got a lot of support from the advisors and the professors and instructors. They made it easy to get through the courses and if I had any problems they were there to support me.”