Tommitrise Collins, a first-time mom from Macon, completed a recent college psychology exam in 90 minutes and earned a "B" — all while she was in labor.
After a photo of the 21-year-old Middle Georgia State University student studying for her exam in a hospital bed went viral, she told People magazine earlier this week that she was simply handling her responsibilties.
"I didn't want to give an excuse," the single mom told People. "I made sure I just went ahead and did what I had to do, I handled my responsibilities."
As of this writing, that photo — posted by Collins' sister — has been shared more than 15,000 times on Facebook.
Collins' water broke just seven hours before her exam was scheduled to begin on Nov. 12, one week before she was expecting to deliver. By the start of the test, she "was hurting really bad," she told People.
She said that she had emailed her teacher when she was having contractions to let her know that she was still planning on taking the test. But the decision to take the exam was all her own, Collins said.
After 20 hours of labor, the single mother welcomed her daughter, Tyler Elise, at the Coliseum Medical Center.
"It's one of the best feelings in the world," Collins told People. "All of those quotes that you always hear about, they're true. I love it. Sometimes I just sit down and look at [Tyler] like, 'Wow, I really have a child now.' "
On Thursday, Collins set up a GoFundMe page to help raise money for her daughter, and to help cover her college and other expenses.
According to People, she plans to graduate in December 2016 with a degree in criminal justice, and to work in forensic science.
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