New CSM graduate Morgan Lake of Bowie meets with Roz Plater, Emmy Award-winning television journalist and the keynote speaker for the College of Southern Maryland’s 18th Winter Commencement ceremony, held Jan. 19 at the college’s La Plata Campus.
Lake, 26, originally from Dunkirk, had a particularly rough obstacle to overcome during her years at CSM. The communication student’s mettle was tested in an extraordinary way in July 2013. She was driving across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge when a tractor-trailer knocked her car off the bridge and her car plummeted close to 30 feet into the Bay water below. The impact shattered her windshield and the driver’s side window. And somehow, instead of going down with her car and drowning, Lake found the wherewithal to pull herself together, climb out through the window and swim to a safe place, where she was later rescued. She was the headline of the news, an inspiration.
But the story didn’t end there for Lake. She spent time in the hospital. She was so traumatized by the event, she couldn’t drive for five months after the accident, making this normally independent young woman dependent on others as she tried to keep up with the myriad of doctors’ appointments that made up her days. “It had a big impact,” Lake said of the accident. “I was doing neural feedback a lot. I experienced memory loss.”
After taking a two-year break from college, however, Lake was ready to get back to her studies. “I wanted to come back to CSM because of how much support and care everyone offered at CSM — from the public safety officers, to all of the staff, advisers in the front office and, of course, the teachers. They really want all their students to be successful,” Lake said. “I truly enjoyed my time at CSM and will never forget it and the people that had an impact in my life.”
Lake said the accident has changed her views on the importance of classes at CSM.
Coming back to CSM was challenging, but the professors were so helpful and supportive, Lake said, making her sure she’d made the right decision. “There was so much love,” she said.
She described herself as someone who’d crammed her schedule with activities. After getting this second lease on life, “I definitely took my classes more seriously,” Lake said. “I didn’t load my plate up as much.”
At this graduation, Lake is celebrating that she was able to overcome much and still earn her associate degree in communication. She is now is preparing to continue her education at Bowie State University with the goal of pursuing a career in broadcast journalism.