Puerto Rico; Miami, Fla.; Japan; South Korea; King’s Bay, Ga.; and, finally, Raleigh, Miss. Wondering about the commonality of all these locales? Namely, Greshka Stuart, the new academic counselor on campus at Co-Lin Simpson Center.
Stuart was born in Puerto Rico but moved as a child with her brother to Miami, Fla., with her grandmother, Ileana Suris, who raised the two. Over the next several years Stuart primarily spent school years in Miami and summers in Puerto Rico, graduating from high school there in May 1995. She admits to taking a seven year gap between high school and college, but those days were hardly carefree.
In March, 1996, she entered the United States Navy, attending boot camp at Great Lakes. Stuart was already accustomed to order and regimen because Suris was a “strict grandma, old-fashioned, conservative. For me, because I was already raised in a very orderly home, it was just an up step from that. I think what I hated the most was getting up at 3:00 and 4:00 in the morning! And it was freezing!”
As a trade off, though, Stuart had the opportunity to see the world and enjoyed it. She was stationed primarily in Japan but also visited other ports like Darwin, Australia; Guam; Hong Kong; Hawaii.
Stuart received an honorable discharge with a rank of E4 in 2000 after her son Xavier was born with spina bifida. One parent had to remain with him at all times and her then spouse was involved in a six month training period as a submariner. Stuart moved from Guam to King’s Bay, Ga., in January 2001.
Soon Stuart enrolled in the satellite location of Valdosta State University on the naval base located at King’s Bay. She hired on as a work study at the same time as she attended classes. In three years time Stuart received her associate’s and bachelor’s degrees. Also during this time she began moving up in the administrative ranks and took the position of Bursary Officer, which is similar to a financial aid advisor before becoming an academic advisor there. Stuart has held similar positions with the University of North Florida, University of Southern Mississippi, and Mississippi State University.
Stuart is a first generation college graduate in her family and is proud of her achievements.
“I had to learn everything. Once I figured out navigating the straits – no pun intended – of academics, I learned so much about what can and can’t be done. And there is no can’t. The limitation is in your own mind.”
In 2017 Stuart moved to Raleigh, Miss., with her husband Bill and their daughter, Kat. Bill is a Raleigh native. The two have been married for 13 years. Bill and Greshka made the decision to return to Raleigh to help care for his parents, George and Cheryl Stuart, as they were aging. They were especially concerned about George’s health and with good reason. He had heart valve replacement surgery but recovered well.
“I’m a true believer that everything happens for a reason,” Stuart explained about their need to move and settle in Raleigh. “Mama got sick,” she added, suffering from the same issue as her husband.
“Her recovery was not as smooth as Daddy’s. Mama died in October of 2022. The surgery was a success but… recovery was extensive,” Stuart stated. And it has been a difficult year of firsts since her mother-in-law died.
Stuart stepped away from counseling when Cheryl got sick. To continue to provide income for her family Stuart fulfilled a long time desire and started a food truck, The Caribbean Frog.
Now that she has returned to work full-time as an academic counselor she is very selective about where and when she sets up. Her menu offers a wide variety of Puerto Rican foods, both savory and sweet.
According to Stuart, however, academic counseling is her calling. Dual enrollment is new to her but she says she is ready…ready to meet students, ready for the fall, ready for the challenges of a new chapter in life.
Stuart said, “I want to help them (students) focus on their future. I already have my piece of paper. I want to help that person coming in to my office get to their goal too. I’m excited about the fall…I can’t wait!”
