“I’m here to get my associate’s. Been just wanting to get it out of the way so I have it as something in my life.”
Andres Barba
22, fine arts
“My biggest achievement…that’s kind of hard to say since I don’t feel like I have one right now. But something that I’m working towards is to actually get back into video editing, creating things and just putting it out there. Videos of some kind. Me and my friends have always talked about creating, like, skits or random things.
“I just really like the idea of how these certain types of media are created, whether it’s like music videos, songs or movies. I just think it’s a fun little puzzle.
“I’ve done a couple of things online. I was trying to do Twitch stuff, but I wasn’t really becoming a huge fan of it. I like playing video games, it’s fun, but when I was doing it, I wasn’t finding it as interesting. I’m interested in creating some sort of story, if that makes sense.”
Evan Lambe
18, undecided
“It’s cheaper, it’s closer by and my older brother came here for welding, so I decided to come here.”
“Probably achieving the rank of Eagle for Boy Scouts would be my best achievement.
“I was 12, in sixth grade. It was something new. It was more outgoing, outdoorsy, too, which I was not used to because I was always inside. It was a big learning experience. My oldest brother was an Eagle Scout.
“(You learned) leadership skills. You learned to cook. Survival skills.”
“I’m like down the street from here. My mom went here, and she went to DePaul after, and everybody I talk to says this is the best school to go to. They say it’s helpful.”
Ahlam Mustafa
19, radiologic technology
“Definitely graduating a semester early to come here. Working harder, doing good in classes. I just took a zero hour class, and it gave me extra credit so I didn’t have to do it the next semester. I guess I was in the same routine and I wanted something different.
“I have good teachers, good classmates. And it’s a really welcoming atmosphere. It’s very diverse, so it’s comfortable.”
Lana Abdallah
18, diagnostic sonography
“What brings me to Moraine Valley – it’s in my jurisdiction. The tuition is very helpful, especially because of what I want to do. FAFSA helps out a lot, too. It’s really diverse, and a lot of people that go here say it’s a good school.”
“My biggest achievement was buying my own car at 17. Brand new. I worked really hard for it. I really stepped up during work, I worked very hard. That’s my baby, that’s my car. I’m still paying for it, but I’m doing a really good job. I don’t have a lot to pay left.
“I started saving up right when I first started working at 16. I was just always saving money for my down payment and all that stuff. And so from there, I really worked my way up in work. I got promoted, and then I was able to finally save up enough to put down the down payment, and keep paying it. I haven’t fell behind or nothing.
“I worked full time, I graduated early. That was a really big achievement – work full time, and then school full time as well.
“I hated relying on everyone. The reason I got a job is so I didn’t have to rely on anyone else except for myself. It really made me happy, being able to do that for myself, and also being able to help out my mom. Picking up my sister, or helping with little bills that make a difference, you know?”
Velocity 
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