Teen mom triumphs

Brandy Volovecky got the news that would change her world the month after graduating from high school.

When she learned she was pregnant, Volovecky was 17 years old and ready to start the next chapter of her life at Auburn University in fall 2006.

At first she thought there was no way she'd be able to follow through with her plans.

"My parents really didn't want me to come, but my best friend and her mom talked them into it," Volovecky said.

She moved to Auburn with her best friend, Christy Reyes, and began her freshman year with more normalcy than she had expected. But once her daughter, Alexis McCovery, arrived, things became tougher.

"I had her in March," Volovecky said. "I was so scared I was gonna get kicked out if I didn't come to class, so I came back the week after I had her."

Volovecky's first few months at Auburn with her baby proved to be too demanding, so she moved home to Daphne, Ala., the summer after her freshman year and enrolled at the University of South Alabama for the following term.

"I immediately went home for like a year and a half," Volovecky said. "I had an apartment because I can't live at home--it just doesn't work. I worked the whole time, so that was good."

Home eventually wore on Volovecky, and she decided to give Auburn another try in 2009.

"I came back in January because I lucked out and found a house," Volovecky said. "I just had to get away from down there. I hate where I'm from."

She had always intended to return to Auburn, but knew her family wanted her and Alexis to stay in Daphne.

"I knew I was going to come back to Auburn as soon as I got home, but I didn't know how my family was going to react," Volovecky said. "They're fine now. They come and visit, and we'll go home so they can see Alexis because they miss her like crazy."

Volovecky said there were several reasons why she felt she needed to leave home.

"It did have a lot to do with the school," Volovecky said. "I really liked Auburn a lot more than South. Back home it felt more like I was still in high school, being at that school and being around the same people.

"It was probably me wanting to see if I could make it on my own, too--if I came here and didn't have all that help."

She and Alexis have settled into a routine in the years since.

"When she was a baby it was not easy," Volovecky said. "Now she's pretty much on her schedule, and it's good.

"The only problem is that I'm not able to work. I'm basically just racking up financial aid."

Alexis' father provides no financial support, but his sister and Volovecky's family help any way they can. Still, Volovecky wants to support her daughter on her own.

"I just really want to graduate," Volovecky said. "In the long run, I want to be able to take care of myself and her and just give her extra things."

Volovecky changed her major from aerospace engineering to journalism in the past year, and she is still unsure of what she will do with her degree.

"I had already pushed back school for so long after having her, so I had to do something that was a lot quicker," she said. "Journalism is way less stressful with her. I couldn't get all of that work done (in aerospace engineering).

"It was really tough because I really liked it, and journalism is like the complete opposite, so it's taken some acclimation."

But Volovecky said she fears the current state of the journalism industry will prevent her from finding a job that will allow her to provide for Alexis and herself.

"I feel like I'm good at writing, and I really do enjoy it," Volovecky said. "It's just kind of scary when you hear all of the not-great news about where it's going in the industry.

"The newspaper business does not seem like a safe idea for me and her. If it was just me, I think it would be different."

Despite these struggles, Volovecky said she loves her life with her daughter and has overcome a situation that defeats many young women.

"I kind of thought my life was over at the time, so I'm very grateful to my friend for making me come up here because I don't know what I'd be doing if I hadn't."