Axia College Featured Alumni

Associate of Arts with a concentration in Business, 2007

Tanya Burnett had completed her Associates of Arts degree in 2007, and was asked to take on another life-changing challenge in early 2008.  A friend encouraged her to submit her name to People magazine’s “People’s Weight-Loss Challenge.” This contest was for residents of Mississippi, our nation’s most overweight state, to lose weight through diet and exercise. 

Tanya was selected as one of the eight participants. For nine months she ate 1,600 calories a day and exercised five days a week for an hour. In September 2008, her struggles and successes would be featured in a prime time special, “Half their Size: The People Magazine Weight-Loss Challenge.”  

It is no surprise to friends and family that Tanya has lost more than 100 pounds since early 2008—she has met challenges head on and triumphed before. 

“I was a teenage mom and I put my education on hold to care for my son. I put him through college and then I started college,” Tanya explains. Her education and the weight-loss challenge were life-altering, “It taught me that I was able to achieve my goals regardless of my situation.”

Tanya is currently working on her Bachelor of Science degree at University of Phoenix.

Associate of Arts in Information Technology, 2007

A dream has turned into a ‘dream come true’ for University of Phoenix alumni Randi Sweeney. This recently published, first-time author literally turned an on-going dream into a science fiction book.

“The dream went on for a week, always right where it left off and I kept writing down the highlights. After it was all over I started to write … I was like a man obsessed and I wrote for three months straight.”

The book, "Dostrunia, The Transportation of David" is the story of a man who finds himself inhabiting two vastly different worlds. While living in Los Angeles, he is called upon to fight the evil Lord of Souls in Dostrunia, a mystical land filled with danger, love and magic.

Early on, Randi served in the U.S. Army and travelled the world for seven years. After his discharge, he enrolled in Axia College of University of Phoenix and completed his Associate of Arts degree with a focus on information technology. He is currently pursuing his bachelor’s degree.

His interest in writing is new, but now that he’s had a taste of publishing, book signings and newspaper interviews, Randi has a goal of writing several more books based on other recurring dreams. He can be assured of many more sweet dreams as he pursues his educational and writing goals.