Melissa Duran immigrated to the United States from Ecuador 11 years ago with the dream of becoming a surgeon. She settled in New York City with her sister where she worked full-time and went to school full-time. She earned Biology degrees from Laguardia Community College and Brooklyn College.…
Degree Program: Business Administration
While growing up in Cuba, Milka Arencibia and her family always dreamed about what it would be like to live in the United States. "The situation in Cuba was very bad. We were looking for a place with freedom and knew we could find it here."…
Miranda Cleveland is a Criminal Justice major who says the perception of law enforcement in our country is unfortunate and she wants to be part of the change. "It's sad to see what they're going through. They're here to keep our communities safe and people are hating on them for doing what…
When Mirianny Tifa Paulino was growing up in the Dominican Republic, the goal was to live in America one day. "My mother always saw the United States in our future. When I was a little she put me in an English institute so I would learn English."
Paulino started taking classes at Onondaga…
Mohammad Afsar has turned challenging situations into valuable life lessons. Those experiences have brought him to Onondaga Community College where he has become a valuable member of the campus community.
When Afsar was growing up in Bangladesh, he was injured in a serious bicycle…
Molly Upah has known since 6th grade her life's work would revolve around psychology. "We had to do a career presentation for class. I was interested in psychology and I haven't changed my mind since then."
After graduating from Liverpool High School in 2021, she followed the footsteps…
Monica Barksdale is a no-nonsense adult learner. With 7 children, 3 dogs, her own business, and a full-time job, she doesn't have a moment to waste. Taking classes at Onondaga Community College along with all of the other moving parts in her life is a big challenge, and she's ready for it. "…
Major: Criminal Justice
Home: Tehran, Iran
Four years after leaving his home country of Iran for a better life, Murtaza Khawari is feeling at home in the United States and on the Onondaga Community College campus. "I chose OCC because there are a lot of refugees here like me. I hoped I…
Onondaga Community College turned out to be a great place for Fernando "Nando" Guzman to figure out what career he wanted to pursue. Guzman graduated from Jordan-Elbridge High School in 2023 and enrolled at OCC that fall. He started in the Nursing degree program, switched to Mathematics &…
Natalee Tomski graduated from Cicero-North Syracuse High School in just three years and planned to begin her higher education journey studying Criminology at a four-year school in Manhattan. But when she arrived there for the start of the fall semester, an unfortunate housing situation resulted…
Nick Berlo learned valuable life lessons during his 6 years in the United States Air Force. Now he's focused on building a strong academic foundation for himself at Onondaga Community College as he pursues a career in the auto racing industry.
Berlo grew up in Destin, Florida. He…
Seven years ago at this time Nick Chai was a freshman at a four-year college, majoring in Music with the dream of one day becoming a teacher. With the benefit of hindsight, he knows he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. "I pigeon-holed myself into one degree program and paid the price for…