Trusting Your Timeline: How STLCC Gave One Student the Time to Grow

June 10, 2026

Posted by STLCC-Wildwood in Campus Life 

A young woman’s voice rang out in the crowded Meramec Theatre: “That’s my sister!”

The voice belonged to the proud sibling of Gesil Campbell, 21, who was walking nervously to the center of the stage at the St. Louis Community College-Meramec student art exhibition awards ceremony this past April, trying hard not to fall. Campbell, winner of an honorable mention in the graphic design category, reached for her certificate, grabbed it and promptly fumbled it, overcome with excitement.

The moment was joyful, slightly chaotic and hard-earned. The award for her Monsters Exhibition Poster entry was one highlight in a year full of many. Campbell served as Student Government Association president, led the creative team at literary magazine Sycamore and designed materials for the annual districtwide SGA banquet, all while completing her associate of fine arts in graphic communications.

But for all Campbell accomplished in her final year at STLCC, the real story is about how she got there, and why she came so close to missing out on the experience.

Finding Her Place at STLCC

Three years earlier, Campbell had graduated from Parkway South High School after spending most of high school learning through a screen. The COVID-19 pandemic hit during her freshman year in 2020, sending her home for remote learning through her sophomore and junior years. When she finally returned to campus for senior year, it was her first full year in a classroom since eighth grade.

Come graduation day in 2023, Campbell knew she wanted to go to college, but she also knew she wasn’t prepared to enter a four-year university.

“It felt way too fast-paced,” she says now. “I needed to take my time and make sure I knew what I wanted to do.”

That fall, Campbell enrolled as a general transfer student at STLCC’s Wildwood campus, close enough to home that her parents could drop her off on their way to work. She didn’t have her driver’s license yet, as the pandemic had delayed a lot of things, but she wasn’t in any hurry.

She’d always loved art, so she took drawing classes while working through her general education requirements. She joined the Artisans and Makers Club, her first real experience with extracurriculars after years of Zoom school. Within a semester, she was president of the club.

By her second semester, Campbell had also landed a federal work-study position in campus life, posting event flyers and decorating bulletin boards between classes. Her supervisors encouraged her to prioritize her studies, and they even asked for her design opinions on campus materials.

The smaller, more personalized campus environment at Wildwood was a good fit for Campbell and gave her room to grow. The “homey” feeling, as she describes it, gave her the confidence to take the next step.

Choosing Graphic Communications

It was during that second semester at Wildwood that Campbell remembered a high school class. Although it was labeled as a marketing class, it was really focused on graphic design, and she had designed packaging and logos. It fascinated her.

Although she was drawn to fine art, graphic communications felt more sustainable as a career.

“It’s still something that is needed and is expanding,” she says. “It’s not only something that’s physical. It’s expanded to digital and motion, and a lot of that I feel like only a human can do that type of stuff.”

After talking it over with her drawing instructor and her business teacher, then meeting with her advisor, Campbell declared her major: graphic communications, AFA track.

There was just one problem. Wildwood only offered three classes in the program: Drawing 1, Drawing 2 and 2D Design. To complete her degree, she’d need to add classes at the STLCC-Meramec campus to her schedule. And that would mean taking another big step.

Building Confidence Across Campuses

To get to Meramec, Campbell would need to get her driver’s license, something she’d delayed at first because of the pandemic, then avoided after failing her permit test twice. Fear had built up over time.

But now, with the motivation to become more independent and get herself to all the places she needed to go, and with encouragement from family and friends, she pushed through what had previously held her back. Within a month, she had her license.

“Having that independence now, I wouldn’t want to go back to not having it,” she says.

That fall, Campbell began splitting her time between campuses, taking 2D Design at Wildwood while starting graphic communications courses at Meramec. She kept her campus life job and activities at Wildwood while building new connections at the larger Meramec campus.

“Going to Meramec, I felt less connected with people at first, because it’s bigger,” Campbell says. “You have to warm up to people.”

But as she spent more time there, the graphic communications program offered her new opportunities, including specialized instruction, real-world projects and a cohort of students pursuing the same career path.

Each campus gave her something different. Wildwood remained her home base, the place where she’d built confidence and found her footing. Meramec expanded her world, connecting her with experienced professors like Michael Swoboda, taking her on field trips to design firms like Paradowski and universities like Maryville and Webster, and introducing her to classmates who would become collaborators and friends.

Taking More Time to Finish Her Degree

After completing her second year in spring 2025, Campbell started thinking about transferring to Maryville University.

“I felt the sense of pressure that I was behind, and that I needed to go now,” Campbell says. “I should only have spent two years here.”

Then she sat down and really thought about it. Would leaving early actually benefit her? She’d be transferring without finishing her AFA, possibly having to pay for classes at Maryville that, with her financial aid package at STLCC, she could take for free. And what opportunities might she miss?

“I feel like, no matter how many years it takes you, you’re never behind because you’re taking the time that it deserves for you to actually finish what you’re doing,” Campbell says, looking back on her decision to return in fall 2025 and complete her degree.

That decision changed everything.

Gaining Leadership and Graphic Design Experience

Campbell’s third year brought opportunities she’d never imagined. She became SGA president at Wildwood, working with her peers to advocate for student needs. One of their biggest projects was successfully lobbying for microwaves to be installed in the new Health Sciences and Technology Center, which opened in May 2025.

“Over the past three years, I’ve had the privilege of watching Gesil grow from a quiet student employee into a confident leader, creative professional and thoughtful collaborator,” says Erica Malerich, Wildwood’s campus life manager and Campbell’s supervisor. “Her growth has been a reflection of both her talent and her willingness to step into new challenges with curiosity and determination.”

In her Graphic Design 4 class at Meramec, Campbell volunteered to be creative director for Sycamore, Wildwood’s literary magazine.

“I felt like this is kind of my senior year here. I should really go out with a bang and do as much as possible,” she says.

She designed layouts, managed her peers’ work, ensured readability across the publication and met with faculty advisor Jason Meyer to refine multiple iterations.

Meanwhile, Malerich approached her with another opportunity: Would she like to design materials for the annual districtwide SGA banquet? It turned out to be perfect timing. Campbell’s portfolio class, a capstone requirement for graphic communications students, required 20 hours of paid internship work.

“By having this internship through this student worker job, I was able to get paid, create the banquet materials, but also have that time where I’m working on this and not having to do it outside of class or outside of work,” Campbell says.

The banquet became one of her most rewarding experiences.

“When I saw everything out in the world, I saw it all printed and everywhere throughout the banquet. And then actually seeing people flip through what I’ve designed, and seeing people put it in their purse, taking it home, knowing that my design is lasting outside of the banquet. It was a really nice feeling.

“I think that’s when it affects me the most, is when I see my designs physically in front of me,” Campbell says. “That’s when I feel like, ‘Oh, I did it.’ I accomplished something that affects people, and people will see.”

Earning Recognition for Student Design Work

In her portfolio class, Professor Swoboda strongly encouraged students to submit work to the annual student art exhibition. Campbell submitted three pieces. All three were accepted. One, her Monsters Exhibition Poster, won an honorable mention.

“She is finishing hard,” Swoboda says of Campbell’s work in her final semester. “Her work right now is outstanding. There’s really just thoughtful, creative, smart design choices she’s making.”

Looking back, Campbell is certain she made the right choice to stay at STLCC.

“All these opportunities, if I had just left, I would have never gotten,” she says. “And I feel like they’re big, big pieces that I’m putting into my portfolio now to send off to Maryville, which I think, in the long run, has benefited me so much more than just leaving because I felt that pressure that I was behind.”

Graduating From STLCC and Preparing to Transfer

On May 17, 2026, Campbell walked across the stage of Chaifetz Arena for STLCC’s commencement exercises. This time, there was no nervousness, just certainty.

Campbell says some of her fellow students decided not to walk at graduation, but she felt strongly about doing it for herself.

“That’s something that I felt like I earned,” she says.

For students wondering if they’re on the right path or moving at the right pace, Campbell’s journey offers a powerful reminder: Sometimes the best thing education can give you is time. Time to grow, time to discover what you’re capable of and time to figure out what you truly want to do.

This fall, Campbell will transfer to Maryville University to pursue her bachelor’s in graphic design, carrying with her a portfolio filled with real-world work and the confidence that comes from trusting her own timeline.