Category: Olive-Harvey College
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Mercy Ekpo
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Shanina Thomas
This story was originally published as a City Colleges news blog titled “Chicago Defender Names City Colleges of Chicago Professor a 2021 Woman of Excellence” on May 18, 2021. On May 2, the Chicago Defender presented their 2021 Women of Excellence Awards to 50 African American women. Among the honorees was Shanina M. Thomas,…
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Dr. Lautauscha Davis
When Dean Lautauscha Davis, EdD, speaks to students who have enrolled in courses at Olive-Harvey College in order to finish high school, her advice comes from many years in the field… and from personal experience. The Dean of Adult Education at OHC has been in their shoes, leaving Englewood’s Lindblom High School after her sophomore…
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Cordell Wilson
When Cordell Wilson decided to study computer science as an undergraduate student in 1996, he wasn’t motivated by a passion for the industry. Instead, he thought the degree would help him land a steady job. However, after the dotcom bubble crash in the early 2000s, positions in the field weren’t as widespread as Cordell had…
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Angelique Nieves
At 24-years-old, Lake View resident Angelique Nieves came to the realization that she had spent the last several years stuck in her comfort zone. While she had earned her associate degree in networking systems administration at the same time as her high school diploma, she wasn’t quite sure how to put the degree to use…
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Vickie Custodio
Growing up in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood, Vickie Custodio was instilled with a strong work ethic. “I did a lot of community activist work,” she remembers about her childhood. “My mother used to run a women’s shelter there [in Uptown], too.” So, when Vickie completed high school, she naturally carried that sense of motivation and determination…
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Valeria Davis
By the time Valeria Davis walked through the doors of Olive-Harvey College in 2004, she had already built up an impressive resume working in communities on the South Side of Chicago. In fact, while employed by a local state representative, she even got the chance to partner with an up-and-coming local politician – a South…
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Shukara Robertson
Shukara Robertson didn’t have plans to join the military. In fact, as a high school student at Dunbar Vocational Career Academy in Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood, she was much more interested in designing prom dresses for her classmates. But when a friend was scheduled to take a military placement exam, Shukara decided to accompany her for…
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Charlette Smith
Charlette Smith first decided she wanted to become a teacher when she was in sixth grade and her teacher Ms. Walker played such an inspirational role in Smith’s life. Ms. Walker was a teacher that stood beside her students and assisted them step-by-step with their classwork to ensure they understood what they were doing. Smith…
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Joyce Turner
Earning a degree and becoming a teacher was always a dream in the back of Joyce Turner’s mind. While she attended some college following high school, after a few semesters, Joyce was forced to push pause on her studies due to financial constraints. With young kids at home, she instead jumped into the workforce, landing…