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Some people return to college with a plan already mapped out. Mischelle Williams returned because life pointed her toward a purpose she never saw coming—and she was brave enough to follow it.
For 35 years, Mischelle built a successful banking career. It began unexpectedly in 1991 when, as a young mother enrolled at Union County College, she ran an errand at a local bank branch. A quick chat with a teller led to an interview with the branch manager. A week later, she had a job offer.
What started as a part-time job grew over three decades into a flourishing career that took her from teller to branch manager at Wells Fargo. “My education got pushed to the back burner,” she says, “but my career flourished.”

Then, in the summer of 2023, everything shifted.

Just months after her daughter’s wedding, Mischelle noticed an unfamiliar symptom after a shower. Trusting her instincts, she contacted her doctor. The biopsy results came back on a Sunday morning. Checking her patient portal, she saw a long word starting with a “C” and Googled it.
The diagnosis was aggressive triple-negative breast cancer. Within days, she rearranged her life to begin an intensive regimen of chemotherapy, 30 radiation treatments, surgery, and immunotherapy. Her children drove her to every appointment, sitting by her side through five-hour treatment sessions.
During those long hours in the treatment chair, Mischelle noticed the patients around her. Many arrived alone—navigating appointments and coping with some of the hardest days of their lives without visible support.

“I would see people come in by themselves and think, ‘Where's their family?’” she says. “If I didn't have my support system, I would have crumbled.”

A question took root: what would it mean to be that support for someone else? At first, Mischelle wrestled with the unfairness of her illness. With encouragement from her family, her church community, and her faith, she began to see her experience differently—not as the end of the life she knew, but as the beginning of a new path.
As treatments wound down, Mischelle felt an instinctive pull back toward the cancer center. She asked her nurse navigator if she could volunteer to sit with patients who were alone. She wanted to pay her family's support forward.
One morning before an appointment, on a quiet impulse, she drove to Raritan Valley Community College just to pick up some brochures.
Instead, she ended up talking with an advisor named Brian Williams. As he listened to her talk about her career, her strengths, and the people she felt called to help, he began connecting the dots. The work Mischelle described sounded a lot like social work. That’s when something clicked.
Mischelle first enrolled in RVCC’s Human Services Pre-Social Work certificate program as a way to ease back into college life. After decades away from the classroom, she wondered how she would fit in and whether she could succeed while managing ongoing health challenges.
Walking into her first class, she laughed as she pulled out a traditional paper notebook while her younger classmates opened iPads. Then, she got to work.

Even while managing “chemo fog,” Mischelle found her footing as a student. As part of RVCC’s Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) program, she worked with Donyea Collins, Jennifer Berry, and professors who helped her revisit her course plan. With that guidance, she gained the confidence to move from the certificate program into the full Human Services Pre-Social Work degree program. Today, she is working toward her associate degree as a first-generation college student.
She earned a spot on the President’s List her first three semesters, joined the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, and received the Sophie Sadowsky Chmil Memorial Scholarship.

“If you would have told me I'd make the President’s List every semester after everything I went through,” she says, “I never would have believed it.”
Now on track to graduate in May 2027, she hopes to transfer to Rutgers–New Brunswick. Her ultimate dream is to work in a cancer center, offering the kind of support she saw so many patients needing during her own treatment.

At RVCC, Mischelle found a true community. Her professors were invested in her success, campus resources helped her stay grounded, and student groups gave her new ways to connect. Together, those experiences confirmed what she had already begun to feel: she was exactly where she needed to be. 

Her advice to other adult learners comes from lived experience. “We tend to get in our own way and talk ourselves out of things,” she says. It’s why she often shares one of her favorite sayings with others: “No matter what setbacks you may face, every setback can be the beginning of an even greater comeback. It’s never too late.”

Explore Human Services and Pre-Social Work at RVCC

For students exploring how to become a social worker in New Jersey, RVCC offers an accessible and supportive place to begin. The Human Services Pre-Social Work program builds a strong foundation for students interested in counseling, advocacy, case management, and community support, and is designed to prepare students for transfer to a four-year institution to complete a bachelor’s degree in social work or a related field.

Students can also explore RVCC’s broader Education and Human Services pathway to learn more about related degree options and career paths. For those searching online for human services degree New Jersey, human services AA degree near me, or other related terms, RVCC offers flexible pathways that work for recent high school graduates, adult learners, career changers, and anyone ready to pursue meaningful work.

As a community college, RVCC offers an affordable, high-quality starting point for students comparing schools and programs or considering the best place to begin in NJ. With a strong academic foundation and personal support, RVCC helps students across New Jersey move forward with confidence.

Learn more about RVCC and apply today!