Student Spotlight: Caroline Floyd

After being in a car accident that led doctors to believe she would never walk again, Caroline Floyd, a junior psychology major, defied the odds in every way possible.

“This event has shaped me into the woman I am today,” Floyd said. “It has shown me that I can get through anything life throws at me.”

Born and raised in Darlington, SC, Floyd is the oldest of five siblings. When she was 11 years old, she was a victim of a drunk driving accident. The car she was a passenger in was hit head on, and Floyd was left with three broken vertebrae in her back, a broken foot and a broken cheek bone. Doctors performed a 14-hour reconstructive surgery on her spine, but they were not expecting a positive outcome.

“I was told many times that this would be the surgery that would paralyze me,” Floyd said. “Doctors were in awe when I woke up and could still feel my legs.”

After the accident, Floyd was expected to require two years of physical therapy to regain all of her strength, but this was not something she wanted to accept. She said she was very bull-headed through the process and managed to complete her physical therapy program in about six months.

“This was easily one of the hardest things I have ever been through,” Floyd said. “But with the support of my family, my relationship with God and the internal fire that I had within me, I got through something that I never even believed would happen to me.”

Floyd is currently enrolled at FMU as a psychology student with plans to graduate in the spring of 2022. After graduating, she hopes to obtain her masters and eventually become a licensed counselor. In addition to being a student, she works as a full-time nanny and a part-time nursing assistant at Advanced Cardiology.

“I chose Francis Marion because I wanted to be close to my family,” Floyd said. “I feel that all of my siblings are at very pivotal ages, and it is important for me to be around if they need me.”

Initially, Floyd thought she wanted to major in pre-med, but when she started those classes, she didn’t feel as though she was in the right place.

“I have always had a gift in communication,” Floyd said. “I love talking to people and trying to understand why people do what they do and think the way they do. After my first psychology class, I knew it was what I was meant to do, and I fought it for a long time. However, God has continued to whisper to me throughout my college career that this is where he wants to use me.”

As a high school student, Floyd said she was very involved in the extracurricular activities her school offered, so when she got to FMU, she wanted to continue to be a part of something. That’s why she decided to join a sorority, Alpha Delta Pi.

“I wanted to find some place in college that I fit but also some place where I would make a difference,” Floyd said. “Alpha Delta Pi has fundraisers all throughout the year to raise money for our philanthropy, which is the Ronald McDonald House (RMH). This is so important to me because RMH helps families of children who are very sick or injured severely, and I was a child with severe injuries at one point.

Through everything that she has been through, Floyd said her main goal is to be happy.

“I want to be happy, I want to make a difference and I want to do what I love with who I love,” Floyd said. “It is all those things that help continue to push me even when I feel like I can’t.”