As a teenager, there was only one certainty in Caroline Skinner’s life: That eventually she’d be out on the streets again.
The long, uncomfortable nights spent crammed in a Ford LTD with her mother and three siblings still trouble Skinner. The memories also drive her forward.
Skinner, 51, graduated from Stetson University with an MBA on Thursday. She’s a single mother of four who works full time and runs her own vintage resale business. She credits a few exceptional teachers as the source of her success.
Skinner’s mother moved the family to Florida when Skinner was 12. The hope was that the children could be closer with their estranged father. However, her mother had a ninth grade education and no job prospects. Soon the family was homeless.
“When you don’t know if you’re going to eat that day or if you’re going to have electricity or be able flush your toilet or if you’ll be living in your car or what’s going to happen next, it’s very confusing and chaotic,” Skinner said.
While her mom stumbled upon places for the children to stay, their visits never lasted. Instability became the norm.
“Your biggest fear is coming home from school and seeing that eviction notice on the door,” she said. “The first thing that will happen is your electricity will go off, and then your water will go off and you can’t flush the toilet.”
Desperate to escape the cycle of poverty that gripped her home life, Skinner channeled her energy into school, the only light in her life. With the encouragement from a few teachers who weren’t aware of Skinner’s plight, she excelled.
Annya Koszas, Skinner's Spruce Creek High School Spanish teacher, remembered a quiet, disciplined girl who always was prepared.
"She was one of those kinds of students that everyone wants to have in her class," Koszas said.
Koszas said there were no outward signs that led her to think Skinner was struggling at home and that she was surprised when Skinner told her about it years later.
"In spite of all her economic difficulties, she has been able to achieve and succeed in what she wants to do," Koszas said.
After high school, Skinner married, earned her associate degree and began a career in banking, leaving after 11 years to take care of her two children. Skinner had two more children before her husband split.
And in an instant, she was her mother all those years ago.
“After 22 years of with being with my husband I found myself, at 39, alone with four kids,” Skinner said. “I didn’t know what I was going to do. I had 10 years of nothing on my resume.”
Skinner’s Spanish skills landed her a job assisting an English-as-a-second-language teacher, but at $9 an hour, it wasn’t enough to support her family. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Daytona State College at 45 and then worked at Stetson as an administrative assistant before pursing an MBA there.
Valrie Chambers, interim chair of the ME Rinker Senior Institute of Tax and Accountancy, saw something special in Skinner.
“Caroline is interesting because she went through the program while under difficult personal circumstances,” Chambers said. “She is one who tries very hard in spite of the obstacles life throws in front her, and when you see somebody like that, that’s an inspiration.”
Chambers said Skinner had a big heart and always was willing to help other students.
Compelled by her past, Skinner advocates for homeless children. She’s given a TED talk on the subject and regularly speaks at a poverty and homelessness conference at Stetson, where Volusia teachers are taught how to help homeless children.
During her talks, Skinner takes the audience back to life the streets.
“This is how I felt when I was in a classroom just like yours,” she tells them. “It’s embarrassing, and you’re never included, and you’re bullied and … you feel dirty, and you feel unwanted, and you feel unloved.”
Teachers who care, she said, can make a world of difference.
"They (students) might come back 30 years from now and say, ‘Hey, you helped me. Hey, you made an impact on my life.’”
Skinner said she plans to stay at Stetson as an administrative assistant and that she would like to find something there that puts her business skills to good use. She also plans to continue her advocacy for homeless children.
Now successful and with four grown children of her own, Skinner better understands her mother's struggles and doesn't blame her for the hard days of her youth.
“She did the thing that nobody else would do, and that was keep us alive,” Skinner said.