Delan Fulgham, 18, just graduated from Lewiston High School and is all smiles.

Raised by a single mother, this fall he’ll be a first-generation college student. He’s one of 10 in Maine who won the 2010 Smith Scholars Award through Jobs for America’s Graduates, a $1,000 scholarship for leadership and community service.

That will help him pay for his first year of Central Maine Community College in Auburn where he’ll study business.

That’s a far cry from where Fulgham was in his middle school years.

He attended grades K-4 at Martel and did well, he said. When he switched to the McMahon Elementary School in grade five, “I felt like I was more behind.”

In middle school “my grades were not good at all, C’s and D’s, mostly D’s,” he said. “I just wasn’t into school.” His mom encouraged him to do well, but sports and hanging out were more important.

His freshman year started rough. “The first month was bad. I got into a fight. He swung, and it went from there.”

Fulgham got suspended for five days. “It was the most boring time of my life,” he said. “There was nothing to do. That turned me around.”

He decided he was not going to be a dropout. “I knew I had a bright future as people said.” During his suspension days, “I was there at 2 o’clock every day getting my work. I really wanted to stay on top of school.”

He improved his grades during his sophomore, junior and senior years. “Every day I miss I feel it’s an obligation to make it up. I don’t wait until I see the teacher; I go to see her as soon as I can.”

He got involved, leaving little time for hanging out. He joined the Jobs for Maine’s Graduates program at the Lewiston Regional Technical Center.

“It does a lot for you,” Fulgham said.

Students learn about job interviews, job training, savings, checking accounts, interest and car loans. Fulgham has a car loan half paid off. “You got to make your payments.”

He served as president of the JMG student club, which hosts a talent show, blood drives and other charity events. He volunteered to coach basketball at the McMahon Elementary School, served in Big Brothers/Big Sisters and participated in the annual MS walk.

He said he’s always been interested in business, recalling the thrill of making money with his little brother at their lemonade stand.

Today he works full time at the East Avenue CVS, where he’s worked for two years. He started as cashier. He knew that to stand out he needed to show he didn’t need to ask what to do next.

“I was always dusting shelves, straightening things out and helping customers,” he wrote in his scholarship application.

His efforts didn’t go unnoticed. His manager promoted him to shift supervisor.

A music lover, he also has a side business of a disc jockey at weddings, a craft taught to him by his uncle. High school was fun, he said. “I did so many things.”

After earning his two-year CMCC degree, Fulgham plans to transfer to the University of Southern Maine for his bachelor’s degree. His goal is to achieve his four-year degree without a lot of debt, then go into business.

College will be a new chapter in his education, he said. “It’s not going to end.”

He recommends younger students, especially those from modest-income families, “to keep your head through hard times.” Work hard in school. “Look at the stuff you have instead of the stuff you don’t have.”

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