{"id":22996,"date":"2024-12-09T16:58:15","date_gmt":"2024-12-09T21:58:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom2\/2024\/12\/09\/investing-in-herself-mom-of-six-and-local-business-owner-returns-to-college-after-27-years\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T12:06:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T16:06:00","slug":"investing-in-herself-mom-of-six-and-local-business-owner-returns-to-college-after-27-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2024\/12\/09\/investing-in-herself-mom-of-six-and-local-business-owner-returns-to-college-after-27-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Investing in Herself: Mom of Six and Local Business Owner Returns to College After 27 Years\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Northern Essex Community College psychology<\/a> student Melissa Horne is used to giving advice. As a Haverhill business owner, mother of six, and Instagram influencer, she thrives on helping others succeed. Yet, despite her own success, she always felt something was missing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love my business, love being creative, love being a mom, but I always had this thing that I wasn\u2019t where I was meant to be. I knew I could do more, that I was meant for more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Melissa Horne of Haverhill is studying Psychology<\/p><\/div>\n

Horne graduated from Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School in 1997 with a concentration in marketing. She had every intention of attending college, when her grandmother, the family matriarch, became ill. Horne assumed the caretaker role for her beloved grandmother, and attempted to take classes at NECC, but ultimately had to drop out.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to work; I just couldn\u2019t juggle it all. I had to let those college aspirations go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Life would go on to become even busier for Horne. At 25, she and her husband welcomed twins, a boy and a girl, and then four more children over the next ten years. When the youngest was just eight months old, in 2014, they opened their shop 8 by Design in downtown Haverhill. They specialize in painting and restoring vintage furniture and d\u00e9cor. Thanks in large part to her efforts to market the business on social media<\/a>, she sold all her inventory in just one day. An Instagram post<\/a> about that experience went viral, garnering four million views.<\/p>\n

People flocked to her Instagram page to find out how they could emulate her success. They were also drawn in by her warm and honest takes on motherhood, female empowerment, and mental health awareness. Her account has now grown to nearly 50,000 followers. Horne closed the brick-and-mortar business in 2018 and now operates entirely online.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter I closed the shop, I immersed myself in my children again. And then when my two oldest were about to graduate high school, I started to think about what happens next.\u201d<\/p>\n

Horne says a traumatic experience in her family made her want to use her voice to advocate for more awareness around mental health issues. And, in communicating with some of her social media followers, she realized that going back to college could help her reach that goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always heard from women who wished they could go after their dreams. And it got me thinking, \u2018Maybe I should go to college- is this what I should do?\u2019 This summer, I experienced something profound that made me realize I needed to make a choice. So, I got up one night and applied.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once she made up her mind, Horne was all in. She enrolled in five classes at NECC for the fall \u201924 semester.<\/p>\n

\u201cI took it as seriously as my child going to school. I loved it! The first thing I learned about was the growth mindset vs the fixed mindset,\u201d she recalls of her first week of classes.\u00a0 \u201cThis ability to have access to beauty and learning, as a 45-year-old woman, it has been profound, life-altering.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Horne says her experience has altered her children\u2019s outlooks on higher education as well. Her 20-year-old daughter is also a student at NECC, and her 20-year-old son is planning to enroll for the spring semester. Horne\u2019s 17-year-old, who is a student at Whittier Tech, is taking classes at NECC through the Early College program<\/a>. The icing on the cake is that they are all attending NECC for free: Horne through MassReconnect<\/a>, her oldest children through MassEducate<\/a>, and her teen through the Massachusetts Early College Initiative<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Now, Horne\u2019s Instagram feed includes posts about her experiences as a college student. Her advice to followers is the same advice she gives to her children and classmates: it\u2019s never too late to invest in yourself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was always embarrassed about not going to college, I felt like I wasn\u2019t living up to my potential. But as another woman said to me- don\u2019t feel sad you didn\u2019t do it; this is your time now to do it. I\u2019m super grateful for the opportunity. This experience has enhanced every facet of my life. If I hadn\u2019t been a mom, it wouldn\u2019t have the same value, it happened when it was supposed to happen for me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Northern Essex Community College psychology student Melissa Horne is used to giving advice. As a Haverhill business owner, mother of six, and Instagram influencer, she thrives on helping others succeed. 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