Amanda Hough was a student at PA Distance since she was in 4th-grade. Now, as a class of 2021 graduate, she looks forward to pursuing her future career as a veterinarian technician. She hopes to attend the Veterinary Technology Institute of Pittsburgh after completing her first two years of school at Westmoreland County Community College to earn her prerequisite classes.
“I love animals! I grew up with them and the more I searched and watched our family vet and saw what they did, it made me realize that it was my calling,” she said. “I have three cats and a dog and in the past, I’ve had ferrets and birds.”
Amanda also volunteers at her local animal shelter in her free time to get more experience with animals. During her volunteer hours, she administers medication, feeds them, cleans their cages and play areas, and makes sure they have water.
She also looks back on the time she’s spent with her family veterinarian and the opportunities they’ve given her to learn more about the profession in a hands-on fashion.
“They let me look under the microscope at DNA samples and listen to our pet’s heart and lungs with the stethoscope,” she explained. “My cat had surgery to remove a mass and they let me watch some of that, too.”
She also explains that some of her classes at PA DIstance have helped prepare her for a future career as a veterinarian technician, too.
“My science classes definitely helped me prepare and so did my English class because we had to complete a career project,” she said. “I had to research what it meant to be a veterinary technician and present it to two of my teachers.”
“I loved science and history the most. I felt the most engaged with those classes and really loved learning about them,” she said. “I also loved my teachers. They’ve helped me a lot.”
Outside of her passion for animals, Amanda also enjoys painting and playing violin in her free time. She primarily likes to paint using acrylic and watercolors and uses those to create landscape artwork.
Now that Amanda graduated with her high school diploma this June, she leaves to pursue her dreams with some advice for future PA Distance students.
“Pursue what you love and be yourself because you are the only one who controls your future,” she said.