TCC student who struggled in high school graduating with honors
FORT WORTH, Texas — Michael Funderburk accompanied his daughter, Cassidy, when her advisor was helping her select classes for her first semester at Tarrant County College Northeast. Out of the blue, the advisor turned to Michael and asked, “Have you ever been to college?”
Why, no, he hadn’t. Then: “Would you like to go?” Before Dad could answer, Cassidy, a former high school dual credit student, nodded yes. Yes, he would.
However, Michael’s focus was on anything but college when he graduated high school. He grew up in an unstable environment, moving a lot as a child, rarely attending one school for a full year.
“I was a disciplinary case, and my grades were not so good,” he says now. He was in and out of foster care, group homes, teen runaway centers and youth treatment facilities.
When he turned 18, he started his high school senior year living in his own apartment. He worked full time while attending school full time, but he struggled with paying bills and following a budget.
“It didn’t take long for me to get evicted, and I soon found myself a homeless teen. I literally slept at the tennis courts of my school the night before I graduated. So, college wasn’t on my radar.”
Michael spent his 20s and early 30s bouncing from job to job while battling a drug addiction. He broke the addiction with the help of recovery systems, and life took a significant turn, including meeting his wife and raising a small family. “I finally found the right place and time to do what I should have done a long, long time ago. Go to college.”
He knew he needed to do something different. He got injured as a steel worker and could not return to any type of employment that required long periods of standing. College, he said, seemed like the answer to many problems. He tried Western Governors University (WGU) for one semester and hit an obstacle with math.
That’s when he turned to TCC, and his investment — in himself, in his family, in their future — has paid off.
“I entered this school unsure of myself, not knowing if I would be capable of completing this long list of classes I would have to pass to graduate. I absolutely dreaded math.”
The Student Accessibility Office (SAR) offered assistance and even helped him conquer math. “I was not ready for entry-level college coursework in math when I started, but I took a couple of developmental math courses. I can proudly say that I have learned math and have performed well in all the courses so far.”
Which doesn’t mean that, even with patient, skilled tutors, suddenly math was a snap.
“I have been in the math lab, sitting across from another student, and both of us in were tears,” he recalled. But the feeling wasn’t permanent. “Ultimately, it comes down to one choice — go back to a life of constant struggle or figure out how to overcome this temporary struggle and come out stronger and better on the other side.”
Sure, there were days he wanted to give up, but he kept going, motivated both by past struggles and his anticipated postgraduate life. He has challenged himself to complete his associate degree with a 4.0 GPA and he is well on his way to achieving that goal.
He finds himself never at a loss for incentives.
“Thirty years of being broke, living paycheck to paycheck and being one step away from homelessness again will motivate you.”
His first TCC semester grades were so strong, he was invited to join Beta Chi Zeta, the Phi Theta Kappa chapter for TCC Connect students. At officer election time he ran for vice president of induction and special events, and he won. When the chapter president position opened up, he ran again. Won again. He has held the position since then.
Michael cites two Beta Chi Zeta advisors, both TCC Connect faculty members, for helping pave the way. Misty Mehrtens, who teaches history, believes in him in a way that he’s not accustomed to, he says, and that gives him confidence.
And from the moment he met Dr. Kathleen Ahles, who teaches biology, he knew she was someone he could confide in. He told her about his college journey and his past, and he says her sound advice kept him focused on that mountaintop GPA.
Through her intervention enabled the chapter obtained tickets and rooms at the PTK Catalyst convention, where Michael met a Texas Tech representative. Michael’s next step? Focus on logistics and supply chain management for his master’s degree — at Texas Tech.
He definitely plans to attend commencement. “I never dreamed that I would be in an honor society, much less become chapter president,” he said. As far as the ceremony goes, he’s eager.
“I have all this new bling to show off! Heck yeah, I’m going to be there — I earned it, and it’s my moment to shine!”
Tarrant County College serves nearly 100,000 students each year, offering accessible, affordable pathways to in-demand careers and university transfer. Across multiple campuses and TCC Connect — a fully online learning option — the College partners with more than 1,200 employers to help build the workforce that drives North Texas forward. Bold Steps. Better Futures.