“Always be resilient, because even though sometimes there would be lots of hurdles and it would be hard to jump over them, there’s always people to help you get over them.“
Courses studied and results: Level 3 Extended Diploma in Art, Design and Communication (D)
What’s next: Progressing to Cardiff Metropolitan University to study Artist, Design and Maker, full-time
For Joie, results day was the moment two years of hard work, and a family’s decision to relocate across the country, paid off, closing out with a Distinction in her Level 3 Art Diploma and a place at university, part of another year of results continuing Truro and Penwith College’s 30-year legacy of transforming lives across Cornwall.
“I got a distinction.”
Joie’s journey to Penwith Campus began hundreds of miles away, on the Surrey/Hampshire border, where her family struggled to find anywhere offering ceramics on a near full-time basis. The search for the right fit became part of the reason the family relocated to Cornwall together.
“There was nowhere up there that was allowing me to do ceramics nearly full time. So we widened our horizons.”
After visiting several colleges, it was a single conversation at Penwith that settled it. Joie’s mum remembers her disappearing for an hour during an open visit.
“She came in and then she was gone for an hour. I was gone by talking.” “To my tutor Lucy, for an hour, just about ceramics, and kilns.”
“I want to go here.”
Both Joie and her mum point to the College’s ethos of treating students as equals as part of what made the difference.
“You’re treated like a person, still, not like you’re being looked down upon.” “And it’s quite lovely, the kind of equality and respect for the individual as well. It’s not the kind of hierarchy.” – Joie’s mum
Joie’s mum describes the learning support on offer, particularly a space known as the Bay, as central to her daughter’s transformation.
“It’s been so brilliant, the support here, especially the Bay, that’s just been amazing.” “Having a place to go, one, to have someone listen, or two, just be able to sit and get yourself together, where you knew you were kind of safe, private, and no one was going to confront you, has been massive.” – Joie’s mum
Joie agrees, and singles out one member of staff in particular.
“I think the Bay helped me the most with my confidence, and especially Kate Snook, my PTO. She was the best.”
That relationship extended beyond formal support. Joie describes walking down to the College gardens with her TA, Kate, and talking through creative problems over coffee.
“We would spend lots of time in the gardens, or if I was having a stressful day, Kate and I would sometimes spend mornings just going to get coffee, and we’d walk down and chat through what my next steps were, for how I was going to accomplish this art problem that I couldn’t quite see yet.”
Ceramics remained Joie’s first love throughout the course.
“I love pottery. My media is ceramics, I just like being more hands-on rather than painting or drawing.”
Being close to the sea and Cornwall’s landscape shaped both her wellbeing and her work, culminating in a Final Major Project exploring how nature affects emotion.
“Instead of being in a busy city centre where you might feel really overwhelmed by all the noises around you, it’s very calm, it has a very serene atmosphere.” “My final major project was all about how the positivity of nature impacts our emotions.”
Reflecting on the two years, Joie’s mum describes watching her daughter grow into someone she says she “never thought” she would see accepted onto a university course.
“I never thought I’d have a child going to university, and it’s just brilliant. It has completely changed Joie’s outlook on what education, and what you can do and achieve, is.” “It is quite remarkable… it is kind of a miracle.” – Joie’s mum
Joie herself is candid about how different her path might have looked elsewhere.
“I don’t think I would have been the same if I’d gone to a more academic school, like everyone else in my year did… a very stressful environment. This is not a stressful environment.”
Before finishing, Joie returned to her old secondary school to thank the staff who had supported her, bringing a handmade card and a collage of two years of her artwork.
“I went back and wrote them this huge card, and did a collage of everything I’d made in the last two years, and went in to give it to them. A lot of the staff who helped me get through school didn’t recognise me straight away, because I had this neon pink hair, it always took them five seconds to realise who I was.”
“I didn’t think she’d ever set foot back in that school again.” – Joie’s mum
For future students facing their own hurdles, Joie’s advice is simple.
“Always be resilient, because even though sometimes there would be lots of hurdles and it would be hard to jump over them, there’s always people to help you get over them. Just being resilient and believing you can do it, even if it feels like you can’t, you can.” “Not being afraid of needing help.”
With her Distinction secured, Joie is now heading to Cardiff Metropolitan University to study Artist, Design and Maker, full-time. And she has one hope for how her story is shared.
“I would like my story to be shared, because if it just inspires one person out of this, I’ll be happy. They just need to know they’re not alone, and to hear someone else’s experience of what they might be going through.”
For Joie, and her family, College has been the place where a leap across the country turned into a Distinction, a university place, and a confidence her mum once thought she’d never see, another story shaped by more than 30 years of Truro and Penwith College helping students find their place.
