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By May 15, 2008, she will have unpacked half of that suitcase with the other half sure to follow.
At semester’s end, Norma will be graduating from Ivy Tech Community College with an Associate of Science Degree in Paralegal Studies—her goal of attaining a college degree fulfilled.
Norma’s story of success begins in the South American country of Guatemala, a place, needless, to say, that is quite different from Logansport, Indiana. As a young girl growing up in Guatemala, Norma always dreamed of being a lawyer, but in Guatemala, she says, that was not really an option.
Never losing sight of that dream, she moved to California when she was 17 and began attending an occupational center to prepare herself for college. Later, she moved to Logansport, completed her GED, and began taking classes at Ivy Tech in the evenings while working full-time. Those days were sometimes difficult, she says, as she had to juggle her coursework and job with a new and even more demanding responsibility—parenthood.
Norma says instructors at Ivy Tech were always very understanding of her situation and willing to help her along the way, coming to class early or staying longer if necessary and continually encouraging her to go further in her education and to follow her dreams.
One of those dreams is to earn a bachelor’s degree and one day even a law degree. Both are dreams she plans to pursue very soon.
After earning her associate degree from Ivy Tech, Norma will be transferring to Indiana University Kokomo to pursue a bachelor’s degree in sociology. After that, who knows? Norma says she plans to begin working part-time as a translator in the court system or at a law firm. Eventually, she plans to finally unpack that long-held dream she brought with her all the way from the tropical climate in Guatemala to California and finally to Logansport—the dream of going to law school and becoming an immigration lawyer.
Norma says that her Ivy Tech education has not only prepared her to transfer to IUK or enter the workforce, but it has made her a much more well-rounded mother, wife, and citizen.
“My Ivy Tech education is changing my life a lot in how I talk to my children, how I educate my children, and how I interact with my husband and friends,” says the first-generation college graduate, who will proudly include her maiden name on her diploma to emphasize that point. “I’m also learning more about the political system in the U.S. and that is very important to me.”
The children she speaks about, her four-year-old boy and two-year-old girl, are two of the driving forces behind her education.
“The reason I enrolled in college four years ago was to give my unborn baby a better life,” explains Norma. “I now have two children who are my reason to succeed and excel in everything I do.”
In response to how her education from Ivy Tech has changed her life, Norma says confidently and with tremendous assurance, “If we do not have education, we have nothing.”
Now if you’ll excuse her, Norma has some more unpacking to do.
