Julia has a daughter who is 14 years of age.
Her parents expected her to obtain an undergraduate degree. Both of her parents completed high school. Her mother has some college from attending nursing school and her father is an electrician with a technical diploma. Julia’s mother used to write cards and letters and her father took care of the family finances, taking care of the bills and tax returns. Both of her parents read the newspaper daily and her mother read magazines. She had two or three subscriptions and would also read self-help books. Julia’s parents watched the news every night and her father watched sports.
The family used to sing at church on Sundays, where her mother taught Sunday school. Julia would see her mother reading from church books. The family had a piano but would sing songs only at Christmas.
Julia and her brother were in the same grade at school. Although he is one
year older than she, he was held back in school one year due to a learning disability.
Julia said, “He was at the bottom of the class and I was at the top, so
mom spent more time with him. I was more inclined to ask my older sisters for
help.”
Julia’s parents read to her two or three times a week when she was young
but stopped around when she was in Grade 2. Julia was ill in Grade 1, spending
two to three months in the hospital and she did a lot of reading during that
period but stopped after getting out of the hospital. Julia’s town “had
a part time library; I probably had a card. I remember going to the library
a little but I relied more on the school library because it was new.”
Julia’s family lived in a small town and they would do cultural activities such as going to shows and factories during their vacations. Julia said her family did not go to museums or art galleries.
Julia is currently a Project Manager. She received her Certified Management
Accountant designation after completing college and a professional program.
She said, “CMA requires continuous learning through courses—a broad
range, which includes guest speakers, an Excel course and volunteer work.”
She received on the job training with the previous project manager for her job.