As Naya Reyes began her virtual orientation for Wright College’s 2021-2022 school year, she broke down and began sobbing in front of her computer monitor. The prospect of what she was doing, going to a community college, had never even occurred to her throughout high school.
A member of Von Steuben’s 2021 class, Naya was a great student who took all honors and AP classes and had a GPA well above average. However, the COVID-19 pandemic made it near impossible for her to visit a four-year university and, as a result, could not enroll in one in good faith. After some personal consideration as well as a discussion with her mother regarding which school to attend, Naya chose Wright College.
Being stuck at home and having to watch all of her high school friends go on to four-year universities such as Boston College, Syracuse, and Northeastern, all Naya could think to do was ask herself one question: What am I doing with my life?
However, Naya’s anxieties and self-doubt would not last long. After becoming accustomed to Wright College she fell in love with the school and her professors and felt right at home.
After 2 semesters of bitter work, Naya applied to a multitude of schools in the hopes of transferring to a four-year university.
Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois answered her call.
Now in her second semester with the Wildcats, Naya is academically soaring and working harder than ever to achieve her dreams. The Wright Times had the privilege to sit down with Naya to discuss not only how Wright College helped her succeed in the classroom, but how she was able to power through adversity and become the woman she is today.
After asking Naya how her opinions and anxieties regarding attending a community college changed since her two semesters at Wright College, she responded, “Well first of all I think that there is a huge stigma towards going to a community college as opposed to a four-year institution. I think people think that people go to a community college just because they couldn’t get into a four-year institution or because they just want to get their associates and get out, like that you have no future goals besides getting your two years done or whatever. If that’s what you want to do then that’s fine, but there are other reasons why people go to community colleges."
"Now looking back, I probably would’ve drowned at a four-year university my first year. For one, I am so close with my parents and I think if I would’ve gone out of state I wouldn’t have known what to do. I also don’t think I was equipped socially given that I had spent the last year and a half doing remote learning, and this obviously would’ve really negatively affected my academics. I think community college is really great generally speaking, but especially for me because it is a really good middle ground between high school and a four-year university. It really teaches you how to manage your time on a college level. Like in high school, people are constantly on your back regarding where you’re supposed to be and when, whereas in college it is pretty much the exact opposite. Community college gives you this schedule independence, but it is still fairly low stakes. Like if you do poorly in a class it’s not like you’re wasting tens of thousands of dollars in tuition like you would at a four-year university. It was kind of nice to not have to worry about that financial weight over my head.”
Another way Wright College helped Naya’s success was due to the various resources the school offers despite its smaller size. She said, “I think Wright College and community colleges, in general, are great because they are much smaller schools when compared to a four-year university. I do better in small academic settings and the resources at Wright, at least for me, were amazing. Even the writing center, like just being able to go in there and one-on-one talk to somebody. I credit much of my getting into Northwestern towards my supplemental essay, and the writing center was huge in my preparation and creation of the essay. I kind of applied last minute, only had a week to get my essay written and proofread, and the people at the writing center helped me totally fix it. One of the people there knew exactly what I should talk about, what specific attributes I should highlight about myself, and I don’t think I would have had that resourcefulness if I was writing my essay alone.”
The quality of professors at Wright was also a highlight of Naya’s two semesters at the school with her saying, “I had really good professors. Like I mean Professor [Bridget] Roche [of Wright's English Department] is amazing. I love her, I love her class, and I feel that by contrast, big university professors sometimes are very unapproachable. It is super easy to just get lost in the shuffle, especially if you are in a lecture class where you are literally one of over a hundred students. At Wright College my professors were all very approachable, open to communication and I felt super supported at school … I felt like I was always walking into a room where I was wanted, and I always knew there was a deep-seated love and excitement in each of my professors for me and my classmates to succeed. When you can tell that your professor truly cares about you, it is much easier to succeed.”
Quite possibly the most outstanding thing The Wright Times noticed in our conversation with Naya was how passionate she was when discussing her hopeful career: Journalism. She says, “I just want to be able to bridge gaps between people, and I think journalism and writing are two of the best ways to do that. It opens doors into lives and worlds we would not have otherwise known about and I think, especially that we're in such a divided country right now where you turn on the news and it feels like the world is falling apart, that creating empathy and love between people is one of the ways we get over or like current polarization and I think writing is is one of the best ways to do that.”
When not studying diligently Naya loves to crochet and read magazines or, in sticking with her journalistic thirst for hard-hitting real-life situations, watch reality TV. Another favorite pastime of hers is playing a variant of pool, Dork-Ball, with her friends from her residence hall at Northwestern.
While Naya’s experience is completely anecdotal and not every student’s experience will be the same, one thing is certain: Going to community college is not the end of the world. You are not any more or less smart than your peers who went onto four-year universities, your college experiences are just as valid as those who went to four-year universities, and above all else, your education is just as important as those who went to four-year universities. The plague that is self-doubt is a hard disease to cure, but know that you are not alone. Naya’s story is a testament to this and it was through the love of her family and friends, as well as her own persistence that guided her toward where she is now. No matter how alone you feel, know that everyone has a future, everyone has people who care deeply for them, and there are resources at Wright College to help.
If you are struggling or know someone who is, please contact the Wright College Wellness Center at (773)481-8560 or email your academic advisor. Resources are available in room S-106 during the following hours:
Monday & Thursday 9:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m.
Tuesday & Wednesday 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Friday 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
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