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Persistence Pays Off for Fall FVSU Graduate Randy Goss, Jr.

"No matter how hard or difficult things are, persistence pays off."

- Fall 2017 Graduate Randy Goss, political science major

Randy Goss, Jr. isn't your typical FVSU graduate. The 30-year-old political science major from Fort Valley, GA has already had a military career, serving for eight years in the Marine Corps Reserves before being honorably discharged as a corporal so he could focus on his education. He was also an area political leader, serving as chair of the Peach County Democratic Party from 2015 through February of this year. In addition, he served as state treasurer of the Young Democrats of Georgia, and is currently the southeast regional treasurer for the organization. He interned in the office of the Honorable Sanford Bishop and is now the president of the Pi Gamma Mu International Honor Society for Social Sciences on campus.

I see how the local policies can impact the local citizens."

"Being a native of Fort Valley, I see how the local policies can impact the local citizens, Goss explained. "That drives me to want to find better solutions to improve their daily lives."

To top it off, he is the first Peace Corps Prep Program student from a historically black college or university. The program prepares students to serve as global leaders and project managers by volunteering to help challenged communities in one of over sixty countries around the world through the Peace Corps, started by former President John F. Kennedy. The Prep Program helps students build competencies in education, health, environment, agriculture, youth development, or community economic development, in addition to foreign language skills, intercultural competence, and professional and leadership development. Through Goss' participation, FVSU became the first HBCU to be a Peace Corps Prep institution.

He's proof that anything is possible if you never forget your dreams. He didn't enroll in college right after high school, instead going into Marine Corps basic training at Paris Island, South Carolina followed by military occupational specialty school at Ft. Lee in Virginia. After he returned to Fort Valley, he began working at Blue Bird, but never forgot his plan to eventually attend college. He enrolled at FVSU in 2010 while working full time and serving in the Marine Corps Reserves and quickly became a member of the Student Government Association. He eventually had to suspend his education, but re-enrolled in 2015.

After he graduates on Saturday, December 9, he will begin studying for the LSAT in hopes of attending law school. He has his eye set on Howard University, and is convinced that his focus and dedication will get him there.

"No matter how hard or difficult things are, persistence pays off," he said. "You can succeed no matter what tools are given to you. You just have to apply whatever is given to you to the best of your ability."

Header image: Randy Goss (left) with College of Arts and Sciences Dean Josephine Davis, Ed.D.

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