TAMPA, Fla. — For Gerene Keesler, life was never simple. She always knew something was off.
“I had convulsions off and on as a child,” Keelser, an independent educational consultant, said. “I was born with epilepsy and four brain injuries."
But she had no knowledge of that until she was in college.
“I had eight grand mal seizures, convulsions. Now they’re called tonic clonics, back to back and flatlined,” Keesler said.
That’s when she was diagnosed with epilepsy.
“That really led me on this quest for information," she said. "I got my first neuropsych done and really found out information about why math was such a struggle for me, why things that required hand-eye coordination, gross and fine motor skills, were so difficult. Being on the autism spectrum as well, so it really gave a lot of insight as to why things were so difficult for me."
Learning in school was always harder for Keesler. She knew what it felt like to be different. That’s why she’s turned her challenges into a greater purpose, creating Admissions Untangled.
“My tagline is, 'Don’t let the college process tie you up in knots.' I am currently enrolling juniors," she said. "And if there is anyone out there who is savvy in social media—that is a lot more challenging than I anticipated—who would be interested in an internship, I would be happy to provide college counseling in place of an internship."
She’s now dedicated to helping students who learn a little differently find the college that’s the perfect fit.
“There’s a lot more resources now for a student like me who learns differently, who has different challenges than there were, you know, a couple of decades ago,” Keesler said.
So every kid can be in a place where they don’t have to be afraid to be themselves.
“Find those two or three people or mentors, whether it’s teachers or friends, where you feel okay being you. That you don’t have to hide, that you don’t feel like you have to put on a mask,” Keesler said.
