Nico's Experience

Nico started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and earned an AS in general education. He graduated from Helena College in May 2024 and is heading to Southern Oregon University in the fall to study psychology.

The click moment

“It finally clicked—there’s always a click moment—it finally clicked in my head that if I kept leaning into being miserable as my only personality trait then I wouldn’t be anything other than miserable for the rest of my life…and I genuinely don’t want to be miserable for the rest of my life. I enjoy being happy.”

Maedyn's Experience

Maedyn started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and graduated in May 2024 with an AA in general education. She’ll continue at the University of Montana in the fall, where she plans to complete a BA in Social Work and then pursue her law degree. Her starting story was recorded live in our MT-10 First Year Seminar course.

new direction

“I wanted to change the set that it had been for our family. I wanted to steer it in a different direction. I’m the first in my family to go to college and the first to graduate with a college degree.”

Doug's Experience

Doug started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and graduated in May 2024 with an AAS in CNC Machining. He went directly into a position with Boeing. His starting story was recorded live in our MT-10 First Year Seminar course.

success

“You know, they say, failure is addictive. But the opposite of that is true—success is addictive, as well. So you know, actually getting something accomplished, now you want to do something else…and just keep adding to it..”

Rutger's Experience

Rutger started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2021 and earned both an AAS in welding and an AS in general education. He graduated from Helena College in May 2024 and is heading to Montana Tech to study mechanical engineering with a focus in welding.

meaningful

“There’s always something I can take from a class… I interact with professionals on a regular basis now, and it pays off being able to speak well and articulate my thoughts in a meaningful way and professional manner.”

Sandy's Experience

Sandy started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and graduated a semester early in December 2023 with both an AS and an AA in general education. Her starting story was recorded live in our MT-10 First Year Seminar course, and her closing story was recorded with the help of her son Maverick, who was born during her first semester at Helena College (and earned himself an honorary degree).

Support

“I tell everyone, I feel like when you’re going through college, it’s not easy—especially if you’re working or have kids or both—and so having support is the number one thing… Sometimes, you’re struggling and just hearing someone tell you you’re doing a great job is all it takes to keep pushing forward.”

Abi's Experience

Abi started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and earned a certificate of General Education in Spring 2024. Her starting story was recorded live in our MT-10 First Year Seminar course.

getting better

“My happiness has been…non-linearly getting better. I mean, we all know that getting better is not linear.

Coming to college, I have loved every second of it. It was kind of clear from the start that the teachers cared, and my life was saved by teachers that care…”

H'S MT-10 Experience

H is a Helena College 2023 graduate in the elementary education pathway and a Montana-10 Scholar.

Extra security

“It’s a great program (MT-10). When I needed it, it helped me out, and with the stipends each month—that was really helpful because sometimes I wasn’t sure if I had a job or not. [The program] just gave me extra security, especially when money was tight.”

J's HC and MT-10 Experience

J is a Helena College 2023 graduate and a Montana-10 Scholar.

support

“In higher education, you get the feel for it being more important and it actually going toward something…I’ve enjoyed it a lot… I think a lot of it has to do with the staff here and the support that the students get. I think we get a lot of support from MT-10 and TRiO… I think there are a lot of good resources.”

Jamar's MT-10 Experience

Jamar is a Helena College 2023 graduate in Aviation Maintenance Technology and a Montana-10 Scholar.

what I needed

“Montana 10 and TRiO have been the main source of me being able to get through this college career…. They’ve made it a way for me to pay by bills, they’ve made ways for me to be connected to scholarships….They didn’t necessarily hold my hand, but they gave me the information I needed and made it very simple to utilize whatever source I needed in order to finish the program, and for that I’m very grateful.”

Meehka's Experience

Meehka started as a MT-10 scholar in Fall 2021 and graduated in December 2023 with an AA in general education. Meehka first shared her story in a public speaking course but chose to reexamine and redraft it as part of an independent study project during her second-to-last semester. The following recording encapsulates her journey and resilience.

amongst the shadows

“As an adult, I began to call the place that I would disappear to in my imagination, the Land of the Shadows…”

“I am no longer able to hide behind the shadows. Instead, I embrace who I am. There is no more shame in being proud of who I am because finally the hero in my story is me.”

Mizael's Experience

Mizael is a Helena College 2022 graduate and a Montana-10 Scholar.

Work Ethic

“To [my parents], the most important thing was work ethic. As long as you were willing to work, you would fit in anywhere, and to an extent, that’s true, but what I now realize is that they were referring to the opportunities available to them…entry-level positions. I’ve thrived in all the entry-level positions I’ve had, but I can’t move past that because of my lack of education.”

“....My only advice at this point is: take it slow. It’ll go by fast anyway.”

Fayth's Experience

Fayth is a Helena College 2022 graduate and a Montana-10 Scholar.

Better

“With life and everything…I knew I needed to better myself, and so back in June, I was talking to my parents, and I was like, well, I want to further my education because I don’t want to always work a minimum wage job doing something I really don’t enjoy.”

Surreal

“It’s kind of surreal graduating. You know, I’m first generation in my family. Nobody else has ever graduated, so that’s kind of a whirlwind of emotions. And it’s kind of hard balancing that… Graduating is literally a whole new world.”

Shaine's Experience

Shaine is a Helena College 2022 graduate and a Montana-10 Scholar.

GRATEFUL

“I feel like I got pretty lucky… I still look back and think like, I could’ve been in jail, could’ve died, could’ve had a lot different outcome, so I’m really grateful it didn’t go that way, and it actually ended up working out really well for me.”