“Do whatever you want to do, but be the best at what you chose” are the words my parents always repeated since I can remember. My mother is a professional geographer back home, and my father is an agricultural engineer. Due to their high level of education, they always drilled into my siblings head and I the importance of education. They say we have to succeed and reach a higher level of education than them. Being raised in a hispanic family is a great thing but the abundance of judgement by not only your immediate family but your aunts, uncles and cousins, can get overwhelming. In my hometown, Colombia, there are only two social classes. There is the”higher class” whom own businesses, farms, and have professional degrees, and there is the “lower class” whose more of the working class, and sadly, can’t really afford education. This is the sad reality of not only my country, but a lot of Latin American countries. For this same reason, education within my family is not an option, is mandatory. Political issues forced my family leave a comfortable lifestyle and migrate to the U.S as refugees. The sacrifices my parents have made for my siblings and I are enormous, and the only way to pay them back is by becoming “a somebody” as my mother says, in this competitive society. These are my mothers words: “You don’t want to become part of the mass, you have to be different, you have to stand out”. The generation we live in has become extremely competitive, and making a difference is the only way to be noticed. The more languages you know, the more doors will open for you. The more people you know, the higher chance of becoming “a somebody”. This generation is all about strategies, and finding your way around your field. Education at the end of the day, is necessary and will fill us in with knowledge and culture you won’t gather in the street.

Both of my parents were the first in their family to go to college.  My mother was born in Detroit and grew up in poverty.  Neither of her parents had gone to college, but her mother, determined that her daughter would go to college, delayed her retirement for years so that my mother could have the chance to go to college.  My dad was the son of Italian immigrants, neither of whom went to college, and was the first and, until me, the only person in my family ever to go to college.

What sounds like a feel-good success story, however, hides some disheartening facts.  My mother, after moving 12 or 13 (I don’t know the exact number) times before she began high school, worked very hard during high school and went to the only school she could afford, Pratt Institute.  After getting her bachelor’s there, she was accepted into Columbia.  Being that no one in her family had ever been to college before her, she could not pass up the chance to go to an Ivy League school.  Unfortunately, she didn’t have enough money to go there and still do the work she wanted, which didn’t pay well enough to justify taking out so much debt.

My father was accepted into Cornell after High School, and desperately wanted to there.  He wanted to study physics and math, and Cornell’s programs in both were very well respected (Carl Sagan taught in their science department.)  Unfortunately, he didn’t have the money to go there and instead had to go to Stonehill College, a small college in Massachusetts that offered him a full scholarship.  Later, while working on his PhD in Physics at the University of Iowa, he was forced to forgoe his dream of being a college professor altogether because he began to realize how little money he would make.  None of his siblings had gone to college, his father was dying of cancer, and he had to start making money.  So he used his math degree to get a degree at an accounting firm so that he could begin making some money.

My parents were unable to go to the colleges of their choice not because of high tuitions costs, like those seen today, but because they were poor.  So, when they were older, and not poor, they made sure to save up money for me to go to college.  Unfortunately, because of the high price of tuition, I still would have had to take out debt had I gone to a private school.  I was accepted into many very good schools, but went to Baruch primarily because I got a scholarship.

It’s astounding to think that, because of how expensive college has become, as a middle class kid today, I faced the same obstacles my poor parents did decades ago.  It is as if the only kid who can really go to the best college they get into are the one’s who rely on a great education least, wealthy children.

Education has a very high value in my family. College was not an option, and grades are always expected to be high.

Both of my parents are college graduates, and  I didn’t really have a choice in whether I would attend college or not.  I think that if I would have had a choice,  I still would have chosen to go to college, because I highly value education myself and enjoy learning, but my values are obviously influenced by those of my family.

I grew up speaking and writing English as my first language, so that has not been a challenge for me. My parents are the parents who corrected my grammar mistakes all my life, and questioned my usage of words and phrases such as “That’s so random.” I know that it’s affected me because I correct everyone else’s grammar mistakes in my head all the time, and am probably more careful about the words I choose to use.

I also grew up taking a dual curriculum in Hebrew and English, both at home and at school. In school, the morning classes were always in Hebrew, and the afternoon classes were in English. And at home, although we didn’t speak Hebrew, we weave Hebrew words into our English conversations at all times.

My parents put a lot of emphasis on high achievements, and on succeeding in everything. I think that that has highly influenced many aspects of my own work ethics and values.

In my family, education is an expectation. I believe this strong value of education emanates from my father’s side of the family. Both of his parents started higher education, although my grandmother never finished. Both my father, and grandfather went to the most prestigious business oriented university in the country. We also highly value private education, as public schools in this area just do not come close, although my father went to public school in New Jersey. The person who really deserves the credit for this trend, however, is my great grandfather, as he was the immigrant who became successful enough to send my grandfather to the best schools, and from there we can only live up to it, because that is what he would have wanted. But there is more, since the private schooling I received was more than just math English and science, rather it was religious education also, and I doubt that it would be nearly as complete if I had received that education after public school.

Honestly, I wish there was more juice to the story. Luckily we have this value, because honestly the public schools here are not something to be proud of. I know this first hand because last year I was forced to go to one to get a high school degree from there, and I can tell you I learned nearly nothing besides for Calculus.

One interesting story that I do have is when my grandfather applied to Princeton University, he was rejected on the grounds of a Jewish quota, which in turn is why he went to UPenn. As you can see, I really did not have a choice to go to college, but I never felt I did not want to go.

Education has always played an integral role not only in my family, but in my Persian culture and heritage as well. It is easily among the top three highly prioritized things, alongside family and morals/behavior. For Persians, education is almost like a status symbol; the more educated you are, the more you are to be respected. The “social rewards” for pursing a higher degree is greatly emphasized. That’s not to say that Persians study FOR the social benefit or FOR the status, but it can be seen as a motivating factor. Regardless of these benefits, Persians take their studies very seriously. They are very motivated and determined people. What I find interesting is that, among Persians, the importance of education isn’t taught, it’s sort of implied and has been understood for generations. For example, Persians usually don’t need to “force” their children to study, because most times these children already feel a personal obligation to do so. Persians study for their own good; because they have learned to understand the importance of it.

An example lies with my father’s personal experiences with education. He was born in Tehran, Iran, and was the oldest of 8 children. At the age of 14, he made a decision on his own to leave Iran and come to the United States alone in order to pursue an education. He knew that by coming to America, he would get a much better education than if he were to stay in Iran (though the schools in Iran are very prestigious as well). He didn’t know much English, but he strove to make things work. He applied to schools on his own, found a place to rent, worked a handful of odd jobs and slowly but surely began to build himself up and get an engineering degree. He understood the importance of education and how obtaining a higher degree would make himself and his family better off.

Similarly, I found myself making a decision about education when I was deciding between two different high schools. One of schools—the one that I knew most about because I had grown up hearing about it– was closer in proximity, offered a good education, and had many students per grade. The other school—which I didn’t know much about—was known for its demanding curriculum and strong academic achievement, for the stellar advising, and for the notable teachers. I remember feeling that I would be most comfortable going to the school I knew most about, even though the education wouldn’t be as good. I ended up choosing the school with the more demanding curriculum—putting myself out of my comfort zone for the sake of education. Though the adjustment of a new school was hard, I quickly realized that I made a sound decision.

Having said that, the idea of college was never a doubt in my mind. I always knew I would go to college; not because my parents would make me, but because I would want to. My dad has frequently said that “No one forces you to go to college. It’s a decision you make on your own. You decide to go because you know what’s best for you”. He doesn’t believe that one should be forced to go to college, but rather he hopes that we (my siblings and I) should understand and appreciate value that education can give us!

When I was little, I was taught the importance of education. If I got below an 80, then that was like a disgrace to the family. My mother would tell her friends and relatives. This made me cared more about my grades and study harder. English was usually my weakness. Growing up as a child, I was not really interested in learning. I had the attitude that how will math, science, or social studies help me in the future? My mother always say work hard in school, try your best, and you will go to a good college and get a fine job. In my family, education is crucial. She does not want me to be like her, doing labor work. She works for 365 days for the whole year and at least 11 to 14 hours a day. Seeing how hard my parents work made me work hard in school and want to go to college. Here I am at Baruch College.

Every summer, I go to summer school, which my parents pay for. Moreover, after school, I go to programs to finish my homework and tutoring. My parents save all their money they work for us. The money that they made had sweats and tears in it. They would safe the best for us. For example, when we go shopping, if we like something, they just grab and pay for it. However, when it’s for themselves, they do not feel like wasting money like that.

My parents were not as fortunate in China. The highest education they achieve is high school. Starting from third grader, I went to prep school. My parents did not know English, so they could not teach us how to do homework. At that time, we only speak Cantonese at home. We love watching TVB dramas, which is Hong Kong dramas. Since as a child, I was not raised in a setting that I was able to be expose to English, my English skills was not great. In my report cards, my lowest grade was usually English. This also affected my other subjects such as science and math because if I did not understand what the problem was saying, then I got it wrong.

The only thing my mother helped me with was math. When I was in Kindergarten, I was doing addition and subtraction. My mother taught me to use my thumb, representing ten. Then I can use my other fingers for the unit digit. Some people stereotype Asians saying that they are good in math. Honestly, as a child I did not like math. I do not understand geometry at all. In my head, I wonder why a three sided thing is called a triangle. Later, I realize I just have to accept for what it is. I was terrible in geometry. Once I got to middle school, I love math, and I continue with my math education in high school and was accepted into the Math Major. If I did not start from basic math again, then I would not have understood math. Even more, I would not have love math. Asian people is not born to be good in math. All race has people who excel in math, not just Asians.

Born to an immigrant Taiwanese father and Chinese mother, I am a second generation Asian immigrant that embodies the stereotypes of Asians. I have high achieving grades, am good at math, and wear glasses.  As a child, I was expected to achieve high grades. But it was almost a natural process; materials taught in school were digestible no matter the subject. I was as good in English as I was in math. However–like many other second-generation immigrants–I was placed into an ESL class despite my coherent English. Fortunately, I exceled in ESL materials and was quickly placed out after less than a year.

However, it is quite mistaken to assume that I am the way I am due to a “Tiger Mom” or the insane schedules that Asian parents force onto their kids. The pressure that some parents place onto their kids can only force them to become robots that achieve high scores; it cannot foster personal growth. Growing up, I lived in a family without the same cultural stereotypes. My mother did not cook–it was my father who did. It was quite reasonable due to the fact that my father was simply a better cook. Due to this, I don’t see the stereotype of a woman being in the kitchen at home, sowing the seeds to my feminist side.

More importantly, I credit my success to the support of my family. Throughout my life, my parents haven’t forced me into activities I disliked and always respected my opinion. Many Asian children enroll in test preps to achieve high SHSAT and SAT scores to get into good high schools and colleges. After asking for my opinion, I decided to try it out. When I felt that the test preps did nothing to help, I quit and my parents respected my reasoning. During the college application process, I admitted that I didn’t prefer to apply to Ivy Leagues. Asking my working class parents to pay for my college tuition was something I did not want. Growing up with this background has allowed me to properly think ahead and decide how I want to do things. The choices that I make are my responsibility. I wouldn’t be who I am without my supportive family.

I am going to be the first person in my family to graduate from college. This is extremely important to my family but it also comes with a lot of weight and responsibility. I want to do well for my family but not just for them for me as well. I want to be able to help my family financially. Education has always been the most important thing for me. It was my way to free myself from ignorance, and give me opportunity that my family has never had. My parents never let anything get in the way of my education. They did not and could not further their own, and it was their personal missions to make sure I did well and stayed in school because it was a privilege to be able to further my education. My parents lack of education has stunted them in many ways, and had they been able to continue going to school, our lives could have been very different. Because my parents did not experience this, it has made me more determined than ever to further my education and to excel. I want to be able to help my family, I want to say I did it on my own, and I know my family does not have the means to support me if I should fail. My family is made up of white Americans, descended from Europe. We do not experience any racial struggle living in America, but the class struggle has done grave things to our family. Our lack of means to support one another has even resulted in tragedy. The American dream, is that you can become someone in society, and be affluent, without having to come from money. In many other countries if you are not born into money, you do not have any opportunities to make it. My parents raised me that I could do whatever I wanted to. They did not restrict me in any endeavors I had, they always encouraged and supported me. I have seen what lack of education, opportunity, and literacy does to people. It can change everything. This is why I will not give up, I will persevere despite how difficult college can be, especially for someone who does not come from a wealthy family. I take my studies seriously, because for me, unlike some of my fellow students, I can only rely on me and my own achievements through education to give myself and my family the lives that we deserve.

Being a first-generation immigrant has truly affected my family’s views on education. We immigrated from Ukraine in search of opportunities to live better lives. Since the day we arrived here, around 13 years ago, my parents have preached the importance of an education and getting good grades. They believe that in this country, education is the key to success.My social class has given me insight into why they were so strict with my schoolwork. My dad would often take me along during the weekends to show me the harsh conditions he had to work in all day; ensuring that i wouldn’t want to follow in his footsteps. I had learned the hard way that acquiring a college education would be the difference between doing back-breaking labor (such as my dad) and working in a comfortable office.

Almost since i could remember, my parents attitudes towards schoolwork affected my life in many ways. They always bought books to help me not fall behind and to learn beyond the classroom material. They firmly believed that the public school curriculums were subpar and pushed me to aim for specialized schools such as Bay Academy and Brooklyn Technical High School. My parents also sent me to after-school tutoring programs to help me with subjects that i didn’t fully understand. One of my worst subjects was always English, and it made sense considering the fact that my elementary school had no special programs for kids whose first language wasnt English.

Throughout my life, with the help of my parents, i have developed a strong work ethic and a zero-tolerance policy for failure. I think that their values have rubbed off on me, and i wouldn’t be able to see a future for myself without a college education.

I was born to a family that is fourth generation American on both sides, English as a first language in the homes with routes going back to the 1800’s living in New York City. One set of my grandparents are both public school teachers, so there was a strong emphasis on education my entire life. That being said, there was no question that I would complete my higher education and hopefully post graduate, as well. Growing up in New York and New Jersey as an Orthodox Jew, I attended a dual curriculum private Jewish schools, that included a secular and religious education. My day consisted of class from 8 am-6 pm with 10 courses,  including mandatory second language classes. My parents both received bachelors degrees from local colleges and started their own small businesses. During their college years, they both held different internships and several jobs to pay their way through school. Their work ethic is an extremely important principal in my upbringing and has paved the way for me to take an interest in business and benefit from my family’s business knowledge and experience. All of my siblings, except my younger brother (still in high school), have received college and graduate degrees and now all hold jobs and are professionals in their fields. Having such a strong oriented family background with an emphasis on education, it is important for me to reach impressive educational and professional goals as well.

Being a second generation immigrant, sociologists would argue that we are the most privileged. For third generation, they are not as privileged because they do not retain their culture as much but fully assimilate into society. The second generation assimilates into modern society but at the same time retain their parent’s culture which is more beneficial. From an early age, my mom would always ask me”do you want to work now and then slack later, or slack now and work hard later?” Of course, I would rather work hard now. Not to say that other cultures don’t value education, but in Chinese culture, parents are willing to sacrifice nearly everything to fully supplement their child’s education. Although my parent’s have never attended any academic institutions high than grade school, they sacrificed everything to give their children a good education. At the roots, it could be filial piety that contributed to education. Filial piety makes you devoted and hardworking, and if applied to schoolwork, it will make you successful.

I struggled in elementary school because I had no knowledge of English, and neither did my parents. However they were willing to work more hours  to get me ESL classes. My parents owned a Chinese restaurant. For my classes, I would have to rely on myself to understand the material taught in class. I was placed into a Catholic private school, to be safe from the ghettoes and public schools. But because of the strict rules and ceremonies, I felt as if it hindered my education, and instead educated me to be well-mannered. The neighborhood I grew up in was filled with violence which discouraged me from associating with the others. This might have contributed to my awkwardness, which resulted in my staying at home and studying. My parents taught me to believe that I should strive to be the best, and be extremely competitive. It fueled my drive to attain a high level of education.

Although both of my parents have obtained college degrees and have always done well in school, their attitude towards my education has always been very “hands-off”. I have always received good grades and no one ever had to reprimand me to do my homework. My dad used to always tell me, “You’re not going to school for anyone but yourself. If you don’t want to go to school, you can always find a minimum wage job.” He knew that threats of punishment and yelling would only make me want to rebel, and in the end hurt my future. I feel that a lot of parents push their kids too hard; I have always believed that your personality and the kind of person you are has just as much if not more worth than your grades.

My father was the first in his family to go to college, while both of my mothers’ parents were college-educated. They came from two different social classes in Poland, but they both took their education very seriously. My mother attained a degree in nursing and loves what she does; my father’s degree in mechanical engineering, however, did not help him in finding a job in New York. He ended up becoming a driver and I can tell he wants me to have a better life. I think the reason he has never been as hard on me regarding education is because I have seen the hardships my parents faced. I have worked many minimum wage jobs and since I graduated high school I have lived on my own and seen how hard it is to make a living wage.

Because I have come to America when I was nine, my parents were never hard on me when it came to English. It was not my native language, and they had no idea what it was like to sit in a classroom completely clueless searching for every other word the teacher said in a Polish-English dictionary. Regardless, I have always tried my best in every subject; I know that if I can start my education from scratch and learn a whole new language I can already do more than most people.

I come from a family with two completely different backgrounds. My father grew up in the wealthy town of Chappaqua, NY, and went to private school. His father, who worked his way through college year-round and graduated with a degree at only 18 years old, is a successful accountant. My father and each of his siblings went to college as well, as it was viewed as one of their stepping stones to a good future career. Though my dad did not complete college and instead began working for his father, college was something his parents had encouraged a great deal. They technically had a choice as to whether or not they could go, but they didn’t really know of the other choice. The higher education, my grandparents thought, would provide the family with the means necessary to get the major kinds of jobs they wanted. My mother’s experience, on the other hand, was much the opposite. She grew up in a household that only made enough to just provide food for the family. Since her father could do so, he had a job. He worked his whole life and would not take a day off. He believed wholeheartedly that you earn your place through hard work and dedication and have to do whatever you can to take care of the family. My grandmother was a stay-at-home mom who took care of their four children. Neither of them even thought it was an option to go to college. They never had that kind of money. By the time they were graduating high school, then, too, my mom and her siblings chose the same route as their parents and did not go to college. My grandparents just didn’t really agree with it. They supported the idea that you worked to make money and you’d do it in the trade in which you were skilled or you’d take whatever you can get. They were never lucky enough to know otherwise. My mother did end up obtaining her degree, because she wanted it, but not until she was in her mid-twenties and had been out of their house for many years. When I’ve spoken to one of my uncles about his own decision not to go to college, it is always a touchy subject. He says he regrets it. He has seen how it has limited his opportunities and admits how he wished his parents had pushed him to take the sports scholarship he had been granted for football and furthered his education. It could have taken him on a completely different path. But, he says with a sigh, “it’s too late now.”

As much as I want to refute his statement, as much as I want to go back to my uncle and say “it’s never too late,” I can’t. I know because of his situation right now and after having two kids currently in college themselves that going back to school is not a feasible option for him. And, although he has still had a successful life, I wonder what it would be like now if he had taken that scholarship. Would things be easier for him? Would my mother and her siblings have pursued a completely different paths in life if they had followed high school with a higher education?

I, and no one else, can answer these questions. What I can answer, though, is how these two opposing outlooks from each side of my family have affected my decisions for a future. My parents, though they believe college is important, would support me as long as I make a decision that would support myself. In my own current opinion (which is always open to change) I believe that it is up to the individual whether or not they think college or a trade job would be the right decision for them. I think people know what’s best for themselves and they know their own personality and desires in life enough to choose what they want to do with it. If you want a career that needs a degree, get one. If you don’t, fine. I, however, am always looking to learn. I’ve always known I was going to go to college because I would like to leave myself with as many options as I can as I grow older and I never want to stop being taught. I am a sponge for knowledge in that way. Anyhow, I would never want to end up as an adult, like my uncle, questioning my past decisions and wondering how my life would have ended up if I had done things differently. I am going to do all that I can now to ensure that I have a full and bright ways ahead. I believe with my degree and with the experience I get in college that I, as an individual, would be more successful. I just want to make sure that I will always have a way out, I will always have another choice, whenever things get tough or I have to leave a job.  

Not to repeat myself, but, I don’t believe there is any one answer as to who or when one should go to college. It’s a personal decision that one should make based on their own wants and expectations in life. One thing I will leave off on is that, no matter what, access to an education is an invaluable opportunity that we are given in this country. Don’t ever take lightly a chance to learn more, a chance to study and research more, about the world and all that inhabits. I hope everyone and anyone who wants a higher education has the chance to because I have found it so far to be as great or greater than anything I’ve done in the past. I also am biased because I am able to learn from every experience I go through. Even if not just for the degree, though, college is a great way to meet people, to discover your passion, and to link yourself to opportunities you may have never even known existed otherwise. I wish everyone could at least fully understand all that college can (or can’t) do for a person before they made their decision as to whether or not to enroll. For me, I wouldn’t have done any differently. As my middle school principal said every morning over the loudspeaker, “make it… or not: the choice is yours.”

Emily Weiss

03.24.2016

Growing up my parents had always put a large emphasis on education. For them though education wasn’t just defined by what I learned during my time in school, it included what I learned from my surrounding environment, the advice that people would give me, and also what I learned from traveling and speaking different languages. Ever since kindergarten I had gone to a Jewish day school, so my school days were longer than most and a few of my classes were taught in hebrew while the rest were taught in English. For my parents a well rounded education is what they perceived as the key to success in the future.

Having gone to school with many students who came from backgrounds similar to mine, with either parents or grandparents that were immigrants who had left their respective countries because of religious reasons rather than reasons of wealth and prosperity, many of us had parents who put a great emphasis on education. As a child I remember being told that there isn’t just one kind of way to learn and that learning can happen everywhere and it isn’t exclusive to a classroom setting. I think hearing that repeatedly as a child and being given the many opportunities that I was given has really fostered my love for learning.

Both of my parents immigrated to the U.S as teenagers, my mother from Russia and my father from Israel and even though both of them had moved here speaking barely any English they managed to go to school and learn English and both become very successful in their respective fields of work. I think the process of immigration for both of my parents taught them many things including various languages and skills that they wouldn’t have learned had they otherwise not moved. I think that their experiences have pushed them to put such an emphasis on education for me and my siblings and that is probably why they believe learning can happen everywhere and believe it to be the key for me to succeed in whatever I plan on doing in the future.

In my opinion, education is one of the most important things an individual can invest into because not only does it help them find a job but it makes them a well-rounded individual who is open-minded to different cultures around the world. I think my parents have played and are playing an important role in my education. Both of my parents were born into poverty in their native Pakistan. My father was struck with polio as an infant. He was robbed of a life with movement in his right leg. My mother’s father passed away when she was a little girl.  My mother had to drop out of school to help support the family, rather unconventional in patriarchal Pakistan. She worked in crop fields and herded sheep, giving all of her earnings to her mother. Realizing the difficulties of providing for a child in Pakistan, my parents decided to leave for a better life in America, something that many Pakistanis desire, yet are not able to do. Despite my father’s health condition and our family’s socio-economic status, my parents somehow managed to get to the United States. My father has worked practically every day since he arrived in the United States, providing not only for us at home, but his family in Pakistan as well. In spite of his polio, my father is a cab driver. He uses his left leg to shift between the pedals. It is a tough life for him, I have no doubt. I see it in his eyes when he comes home from work and I happen to be up studying late at night. I want to live a respectable life earning a decent salary so that my parents can enjoy the rest of their lives without being concerned about having enough food on the table, good quality health care, or living in a better community. The way I see it, my parents have taken me this far, now it is my turn to catapult us into a lifestyle that provides us with comfort and a quality standard of living.

My name is Denys Piddubnyi. I am Ukrainian. I was born is a small city Sumy on the left band of the river Symka. My cities situates about fifty miles from Russian border, which is why we are having a huge impact of Russian language and culture to my education and history of my family. As a lot of us know URRS was formally enacted on December 26’s, 1991 and all fifing republic got independents. Ukraine was one of them.

I was born in 1989 and officially I was a USSR citizen for three years and after it I become an Ukrainian. I don’t remember a lot from that time that’s why I can’t tell you much about “how was it?” Well when I asked my parents and friends of the family all what they were telling me is that: “It was a nice time with slight difficulties in getting products from behind the “Iron wall”. But over all their life were stable and full of possibilities even without strong connections with government or rich parents behind shoulder. Prices were low, education was free and if you work hard and ambitious, you will do well in life.” – from the memories of a good friend of my family, Roman.

My mother Ella was born in Murmansk. It is a port city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast, Russia (nowadays), located in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, an inlet of the Barents Sea on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula, close to the Russia’s borders with Norway and Finland. She got an education there and came to Sumy to work at the textile factory right after her graduation from college. She is a professional seamstress. She met my father Alexander in Sumy and in a couple of years they got married.

My father Alexander was born in small city close to Sumy. At the age of 17 he got enforced into the USSR army and been deployed to Transnistria is a partially recognized state located mostly on a strip of land between the River Dniester and the eastern Moldovan border with Ukraine. Since its declaration of independence in 1990. This state’s claims to territory east of the River Dniester and to the city of Bender and the localities surrounding it on the west bank are largely unrecognized. Transnistria lies in the historical region of Bessarabia. By that time USSR. After serving two years there he came back to Sumy and found a job as a cab driver.

As you can see from my background my parents never been reach and never get a university degree or high education, I can say for them it was a priority in their life’s, that I can be the first person in our family with diploma from university. My education started in 1996 when I went to the first class of the public school. Educational system in my country in 1996 was a very similar to education in USSR, “old school” teachers with their own views on education; I remember they invested more time in how we are holding our pens instead of what we are writing. I remember my first teacher asked my mother to school several times because I held my pen in the left hand instead of the right one and she suggested her to re-train me to write with my right hand. But it is just one memory from my young years. Over all education was interesting and difficult as I understand now, because we learner many subjects and material people learning in college here. I got good marks till about middle school and after it my education got a little down because I invested more time into my friends and joy. I graduated from school in 2006 with a couple of C’s but over all I get a good marks.

When I got enrolled into Sumy State University I was 16 years old. I was far away from education and from thoughts about who I want to be in my future life I believe that not many people able to tell who they want to be in future and how they want to live their lives at this age. I got my first computer in 2004 and probably I can mark this as the point in my life which helped me to choose my future degree. I choose Compute Information Sciences as my major and programming as my minor. In my country computer sciences was developed with a huge gap compare to the rest of the world so for me choosing this major was a huge possibility for future carrier. We were the first group of student who were accepted to this course and it was the first time in history when university created this major. Professors were not sure what to give us and because of that we got a lot of math, programming, statistic and design of the mechanisms. All this crazy classes were mixed with pre-required classes such as history, Literature and Ukrainian language. To say that it was a little difficult is not to say anything. We got more than thirty hours of programming together with design and calculations of margin of safety. A couple of times I thought about dropping of the university, but my perseverance and friends around me in class pushed me thru it. I really liked my class and our support of each other was incredible.

I want to make a step back and tell you a little about my English language in my own country. I started to learn English in kindergarten. I believe it was the only one place where four years kids knew how to say basic, but words, in other language. My parent saw that I like English and they found a good school for me where I can improve and get a good knowledge of English for my future. Unfortunately English in university was not a priority and four years without practicing it left a big mark on it.

To understand Russians you need to understand their relationship to education in Russian community. Education for Russians here is like a symbol of success in community, you can compare it to the big, house or an expansive car. If you look at the numbers between immigrants the average of 67% finished high school, compare to 80.3% of Russian immigrants. 61% of the Russian people in United States have a Bachelor Degree or above, 19% have an equivalent of the US Associated Degree and 17 % finished college in US. Russians families choose the college or university very carefully. Usually a specific part of the whole budget goes to the educational needs of the family in future. Parents do everything what they can to put kids onto the right way in middle and high school so the kids are getting high scores in school for their own future.

My family has always been one that put education above everything else.  To this day, my parents believe that an education is the key to being successful.  Having come from China with next to nothing, they had to work long hours to put my brother and I through school.  Both of us were good students, but we were never really that invested into our schoolwork.  We looked to make our parent’s lives easier by making money on our own, but that wasn’t that well received when my brother made the decision to not attend college. Every one of my relatives have all gone on to graduate college and that was probably what pressured my parents to want a child who has done the same.  For a long time, family gatherings were not easy for them because of him.  Everyone would talk about how he threw away his life and will never reach his potential.

Looking back now, my relatives could not have been more wrong since he is now more successful than anyone else in the family.  He had given up a chance to attend college to pursue own business and I was to follow in his footsteps coming out of high school.  The only reason I ended up attending college was because I felt like I owed it to my parents since I was not exactly the greatest kid.  They still think that me investing this time to school will make a big difference in what I will make down the line, but if they truly understood what I had to give up to commit these 4 more years to school, they may have felt differently.  Just as when my brother made his decision, they may not have felt the same if they knew what he would go on to achieve.

There are many many families that come to America. One of the main reasons they come to the “land of the free” is because they want to succeed in life. Some might argue that succeeding in life requires you to have an education. I agree. My family moved to America for that main reason. In the Hispanic community it’s very important for kids to go to school and become something. That was no exception with my mother. My mother has always been my sister and I’s supporter. She always told us that school is very important if you want it make it out in life. That meant living a good life with little stress and most importantly enjoy working in the field that either my sister and I choose.

Growing up my mother would take us to elementary school very early just as the doors would open up so that we could be the first ones to go inside. I remember having to wake up early at 6 am with the Sesame Street theme song in the background. I knew it was time to wake up early to go to school. My mother wanted us to learn something new every day. She had always mention that she wanted us to work in a good career and in order for that to happen we had to get good grades. Coming from a Mexican culture, education is crucial for the students. Families feel that if you get some sort of higher education it will bring some success to their family and to you, the student.

My families background influenced me to go to college. For me it wasn’t an option, it was something that I had to do just like like going to middle school or high school. Unfortunately, my mother didn’t go off to college and for that reason she has encouraged us to go to college and complete the years. My father and mother reminded us that she didn’t want us to go to a job just to get a paycheck but rather go and enjoy the work we do.

My relationship to education is simple, I like to learn. Coming here to America wasn’t that easy. English wasn’t my first language. There were times that I had to be corrected in the way that I spoke. I learned that by reading books, it could help me understand the English language better. When I write I can sometimes spot out some words that don’t make sense because of the way I’m thinking it in my head. Now every once in a while I might be corrected with the way I say a certain word or phrase, I don’t mind because I’m still learning. Overall, having some education is seen as key to success.