Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Raven Jones
Raven Jones is well on her way to her college degree – and she is just graduating from Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy this spring. This summer, the Marquette Park resident finished up the last two classes she needs to earn an associate degree from Daley College before she heads to Eastern Illinois University in…
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Vincent Harris
This story was originally published as a City Colleges news blog titled “Here to Help: A Conversation with OHC’s Executive Director of Student Financial Aid Services” on June 8, 2022. We asked Vincent Harris, Executive Director of Student Financial Aid Services at Olive-Harvey College, a little about his job and how he helps students…
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Trevin Cox
35-year-old Trevin Cox and his partner were thinking about buying a restaurant and bar before the COVID-19 pandemic changed their plans. Instead, Trevin was laid off from his job in the service industry due to the virus—twice. After the second time in September 2020, he was motivated to go back to school, though he had…
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Cielo Torres
When her parents decided to move their family to Mexico to be closer to family, Cielo Torres wasn’t sure how it would go. She had just finished her freshman year at John Hancock High School, and while she had grown up going back and forth between the U.S. and Mexico, high school completely in Spanish…
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Tia Wilson
Tia Wilson has always wanted to be a nurse. Now, the Gwendolyn Brooks College Preparatory Academy High School senior is a big step closer. In addition to the 44 college credit hours she earned while still in high school, Tia also has her first post-secondary credential: Community Health Care Worker, Basic Certificate. While she worked…
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Luis Narváez
This story was originally published as a City Colleges news blog titled “Adult Learning Creates Access and Opportunity” on May 31, 2022. I was born and raised in Mexico City, Mexico, and I came to the United States at fifteen years old. My mother raised us on her own in Chicagoland, and I saw…
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Lila Aouani
Lila Aouani had already lived in many places before she came to Chicago—Florida, Boston, Ohio, and North Carolina. “Having to move around my entire childhood was definitely hard, but it pushed me to become stronger,” said Lila, a recent graduate of Truman College’s first S.E.E.D. cohort. The S.E.E.D scholarship, which stands for Supporting Emerging Educators…
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Demetrius Porter
Demetrius Porter knows it’s never too late to start over. When the COVID-19 pandemic created employment and housing challenges for Demetrius, a former teacher and media producer from Chicago’s West Side, he recalls wondering, “What am I going to do next?” Then, a coworker told Demetrius about City Colleges of Chicago’s Future Ready initiative, which…
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Paola Acosta
Focus. Determination. Perseverance. These were the values South Sider Paola Acosta had to focus on to achieve her dream of becoming a nurse. Paola knew she wanted to be a nurse since high school. She was inspired by how kind and caring the nurses were to her mother while she was in labor. But she…
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Ashley Darden
Ashley Darden fought through anguish, tears, and self-doubt on her way to graduating from Malcolm X College—but she didn’t let them stop her. Instead, she carried her heavy book bag everywhere she went so that she could study, including carrying it to her job as a patient care technician at one of Chicago’s most prestigious…
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