Category Archives: Student Stories

My name is Elise Almeda. I am a first-generation Filipino American. Both my mom and dad are from the Philippines. They moved here in their 30s, and I’m one of two siblings. My brother is in eighth grade, and I’m a student at Jackson High School as well as Cascadia Community College. I’m working onContinue reading “Student Story: Elise Almeda”

My name is Brena Smith. I’m 21 years old and was born and raised in Olympia. I’m the first person in my family to try and go to college, but it’s been really hard to make it work. My parents both work, my dad’s in construction and my mom works for the state, but evenContinue reading “Student Story: Brena Smith”

Landing in Washington from Cambodia less than a year ago felt like resetting my entire life to zero. New language, new systems, new expectations—everything needed to be learned from scratch. My full name is Han Phannmannavy Phorn, but almost everyone here just calls me Navy. This is my third quarter at Everett Community College, andContinue reading “Student Story: Phannmannavy Phorn”

As a Running Start student at Yakima Valley College, I am studying engineering with the goal of one day working in aerospace—at companies like Boeing—after earning a bachelor’s or master’s degree. Starting at community college allows me to stay close to home and save money while building a foundation for my career. But even withContinue reading “Student Story: Sephen Martinez”

I’m currently a first-year Running Start student at Cascadia College and a junior at Bothell High School. Outside of school, I love playing tennis, listening to music, café hopping, and hanging out with my friends—basically anything that lets me unwind and enjoy time with people I care about. I chose to enroll in community collegeContinue reading “Student Story: Kayla Li”

At 65, I sometimes joke that I’ve lived enough lives for three people. I have three grown children, eight grandchildren, and I’ve been married to my husband for 25 years, after two marriages before that. For about 33–34 years I worked in senior living, and that’s where I got my CNA license and all ofContinue reading “Student Story: Dora Rice”

Originally from Guadalajara, Mexico, Sarahi has lived in the United States for nearly nine years. Community college became her entry point into higher education because it offered an ESL program—making it possible to start learning even without knowing English. After completing ESL, she learned about WASFA, a scholarship for immigrant students, and was finally ableContinue reading “Student Story: Sarahi Jimenez”

As a first-generation college student at Yakima Valley College, education has been a blessing in my life, but also one of the hardest journeys I’ve ever taken. For a long time, I was homeless while attending classes, living out of my car and forced to choose between paying for books or paying for housing. IContinue reading “Student Story: David Nelson”

My name is Reyna, and I’ve lived in Seattle my whole life. I was born here, grew up here, and now I’m raising my three-year-old daughter here. She’s my everything, the reason I get up, the reason I keep going, the reason I finally came back to school after 13 years away. For the pastContinue reading “Student Story: Reyna Gomez”

I recently graduated from the Radiology program at Yakima Valley College. As a mother of two, I chose community college because it was close to home and offered the career I wanted to pursue. With financial aid, I have been able to cover my tuition, books, and even some of my transportation costs. For me,Continue reading “Student Story: Maria Cervantes”