Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Two of GateWay Community College’s students were recognized with top honors in February.
Robel Okbe and Jorge Prieto’s common pursuit for success and motivation to earn a college degree catapulted them to be named into the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society’s All-Arizona Academic Team.
Born in Cuba but raised in Costa Rica, Jorge Prieto had a unique set of challenges when he first arrived in the Valley. One of those challenges was figuring out a way to pay for college in the United States, which is significantly more expensive than in Costa Rica. Once he heard about the Maricopa Community Colleges and its affordable tuition, he was quick to enroll at GateWay Community College.
After initially testing into ESL in 2011, he quickly progressed through the class and was out of the developmental classes. When it was time to set a career path, his interest and talent in math was a big factor in his decision to pursue accounting.
Shortly after enrolling at GateWay, he looked for opportunities to make the most of his student experience and began working as an assistant in the health science and nursing department. He also began volunteering for community projects, such as a neighborhood-cleaning day around GateWay. He volunteers at St. Vincent De Paul, where he helps feed those that are less fortunate.
Prieto knows the challenges that come with enrolling in college and the transition that takes place after finishing high school. When a peer mentor group was created at GateWay, Prieto was quick to sign up to offer students an inside look into how to navigate college life.
His volunteer work, 4.0 GPA, and character helped him be named as part of the All-Arizona Academic Team. This award comes with a scholarship to cover his next 60 credits in college.
“I was impressed when I got it. I was jumping around GateWay the whole day,” he says. “That day I had to tell my boss I could not focus on work, I am so excited.”
Prieto will be graduating from GateWay in May and will be transferring to Arizona State University to attend the W.P. Carey School of Business. This is a bittersweet process as he has enjoyed his experience at GateWay.
“If it wasn’t for GateWay, I would have not known how to apply for scholarships, or do resumes, write essays; the workshops offered are very informative,” he says. “I’m grateful to GateWay for all the opportunities and chances I have been given me.”
Robel Okbe embodies life as a student under one Maricopa. He is currently enrolled in GateWay Community College as well as in Phoenix College and South Mountain Community College. For Okbe, attending college in the United States has been the culmination of a long process.
“I am from Eritrea, which is located in the Northeastern Coast of Africa, by the Red Sea,” says Okbe. “I moved to the US at the end of 2009. When you first move to a different country, it’s not easy. The first year it was a challenge but a good experience.”
By the spring of 2011, Okbe felt settled in and it was time to begin his pursuit of a higher education degree. He found that the Maricopa Community Colleges offered the classes he wanted with the level of attention he needed, and at a price he could afford. One of the advantages he found at GateWay was that smaller class-sizes offered him a level of personal attention he could not find anywhere else.
“I found the teachers at GateWay are more than willing to help you,” he says.
Okbe has been successful in his schooling and currently works hard to maintain a 4.0 GPA. He also gives back to his GateWay community and beyond.
He is currently vice president of leadership for the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society, a member of the World Explorer Club as well as the Black Student Union. He has also found a way to directly help new students by becoming a tutor in anatomy and physiology and volunteering to be a peer mentor. He also volunteers at Banner Good Samaritan family pharmacy. This helps him learn more about his career path at the same time he helps others.
He plans to pursue a career in pharmacology and will be transferring to the University of Arizona in Tucson in the fall. He wishes to focus on research as a way to help his community.
“Every drug has a side effect and their cost seems to be rising. I want to do research to produce better drugs at lower cost,” he says.
Being a part of the All-Arizona Academic Team means he receives a 60-credit scholarship to be able to finish his bachelor’s degree.
“I was so happy because it was a very competitive year and I was glad to receive it,”
he says with a smile. “It is a blessing to get a scholarship like this.”