Manor College Graduate Determined to Help Students ‘Be the Best They Can Be’

Rebecca Klein (Hatboro-Horsham High School, Horsham) graduates from Manor College with her Bachelor’s Degree in Child Care Administration.

Rebecca Klein believes puppies and young children are very similar. They’re high energy, fun loving and find ways to put a smile on her face during the toughest days.

That’s embodied most by one toddler in her classroom at a Chalfont day care facility. With a knack for sensing her darkest moments, the toddler will run up behind Klein and wrap his arms around her legs. He won’t let go until she gives him a hug.

Klein uses moments like that as motivation for her career in education.

“I came back to get my Bachelor’s at Manor because I decided I wanted to be a real teacher – a better teacher,” Klein said. “I wanted to be the best I can be so I can help my students be the best they can be.”

But even then, the pressure of success became overwhelming. Klein lived in Manor College’s dorms for two years while working for a child care facility in Levittown.

“Those were a lot of sleepless nights,” Klein laughs. “I’d wake up early to go to work, get home around six and just work all night long.”

When she returned for her Bachelor’s degree in 2023, the stress continued. One night in particular, Klein sat at home working on her laptop and just started crying. At that point, she reached out to her professor, Dr. Cherie Crosby-Weeks.

Klein explained that she was overwhelmed, having a rough night and asked for an extension. Crosby-Weeks granted the request quickly. Klein closed the laptop and stared at the ceiling.

“I just needed to give myself that rest,” Klein said. “I knew I needed it. When I took that break, it wasn’t as overwhelming as I had made it seem.”

Klein never forgot the help she forgot that Crosby-Weeks provided in that moment.

“When I was struggling, I knew I could turn to her and ask her for help,” Klein said. “She was always right there.”

Crosby-Weeks’ guidance didn’t just relieve stress, it opened Klein to see what she truly could become.

“I think that the fact that she had such high expectations and belief in me raised my own expectations of myself,” Klein said.

Crosby-Weeks said about Klein, “Becca is an amazing student whom I have truly enjoyed in my class, and I will miss her when she graduates. I always smile when I see her studying at her workstation in the library.”

As she prepares to graduate with her Bachelor’s Degree in Child Care Administration, Klein tells other students like her to keep going and find their peace in the small moments.

“Some days are going to be really hard,” Klein said. “You’re not always going to have the motivation, but if you keep going, you can rebuild that motivation, especially when you’re so close. Just keep going.”