Married Couple Balances Family Life While Pursuing Nursing Degrees Together at LSCO
October 1, 2025
Lamar State College Orange is a place where ‘your future is our focus’. For many, it has provided a path to build a brighter future with LSCO faculty, staff, and peers championing each other along the way.
For husband-and-wife duo Brandy and Tyler Harvey, the nursing program has enabled them to focus on their education while continuing to prioritize their family.
Making the decision to go back to school for a career change as a parent can be overwhelming. There is a lot to navigate and countless logistics to figure out for the sake of the family. While it may seem daunting and maybe even impossible, LSCO made it possible for the Harvey’s.
“I know going to school is stressful on its own, and it is even more so if you have a family, but my husband and I are living proof that it is possible,” Brandy said. “We have even encouraged many of our family members to apply to Lamar State College Orange, and since they started, they are now on paths to bettering their future and obtaining their dream careers. It is an exciting journey, and we are so happy to have started it.”
Pursuing jobs in the healthcare industry was a natural choice for the couple. Both Tyler and Brandy were inspired by watching their families go down similar career paths.
“We decided to start nursing school together because healthcare has always been a part of both of our families,” Brandy said. “With my mom and aunt as nurses, his mom as a respiratory therapist, and his grandmother as a certified nursing assistant for so many years, we both grew up seeing what compassion and knowledge can do in people’s lives.”
Tyler and Brandy graduated from the vocational nursing program in August 2024. They went on to obtain their nursing licenses in October 2024 and have been working for Advanced Pediatric Care ever since.
The two are currently enrolled in the registered nursing transition program with a projected graduation of August 2026. Tyler feels blessed to have the ability to earn the education necessary to succeed in the nursing field.
“Nursing offers more steady employment than where I was before the LVN program,” Tyler said. “As a dad I have always felt the need to provide, and with this career I can do that. There are so many benefits to nursing and so many opportunities to grow your career; that is something that has always intrigued me from the start.”
Going through this new season together has been special for the Harvey’s. They champion each other to fulfill their potential in their coursework. What they are most proud of, though, is getting to show their children that mom and dad are working hard to provide and protect them even while pursuing their dreams.
“Just the thought of us both building careers that we are passionate about, and the ability to show our children what working hard towards something in life can do for you, pushed us forward and kept us going,” Brandy said. “Since graduating from the LVN program, we can now both say that our children have two parents that they can be inspired by. That right there is the absolute most important part of all of this to me.”
Brandy and Tyler hope their story can encourage others to pursue their passions. They are thankful LSCO has shown them that chasing dreams with your family is possible.