LPL外围网址 has evolved greatly since its 1949 founding. 它经历了七位总统, 两个校区, 成千上万的学生, program additions and more — yet the common bond tying the College together over all these years is the students served. 他们, 太, have changed along with the institution itself, but their stories remain remarkable to faculty, staff and the broad community alike.
In these pages, get to know just a few of the College’s greatest assets: its students. 他们是唐纳利的真面目.
大麦的一种阿尔瓦雷斯
Berly Alvarez did not like Kansas City when she first moved here from her native Guatemala. She struggled with communication and longed for home. 三年后, after quickly moving through LPL外围网址’s English as a Second Language program, she can’t imagine living anywhere else.
When the rest of her family moved to Kansas City eight years prior to her arrival here, Alvarez was unable to join them due to her immigration status. Instead she stayed behind with her grandmother. She knew she wanted to go to college, and thanks to a generous scholarship and five years of hard work, she completed her business administration degree.
As soon as she legally could, her father urged her to join the rest of the family in the States. Reluctantly, Alvarez agreed, knowing she could use her degree to a greater capacity here. 问题? 她几乎不会说英语.
After hearing about Donnelly’s beginner Community English as a Second Language (CESL) and more advanced English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses, 阿尔瓦雷斯加入. She quickly passed through CESL, ready for the challenge of EAP. 她的发现让她大吃一惊.
“[EAP] is totally different: more homework, more responsibilities,” she says. “And my family played an important role in that, because they were pushing me. 比如，‘你能做到的. 大胆尝试吧.’”
Amongst the demands of schoolwork, Alvarez was homesick and mourning her stillborn child. She attributes the loss with her decision to stay in the US, where she later gave birth to a healthy daughter, 卡米拉(现在3岁), whom Alvarez says is “everything” to her.
“The first reason I decided to learn English was because it was so frustrating for me to not be able to understand what other people say or communicate,她解释道. “我觉得自己很蠢。.”
Yet her instructors see her as a motivated, hard-working student who raises the bar for her classmates.
“Berly came to us as a near absolute beginner, but as we have learned about her and her personality, she is determined to achieve her goals for herself and her family,” says Assistant Professor Eric Kolkmeier. “I have been so impressed with her persistence in all aspects of life.”
“Her confidence gives others confidence, and her graciousness is a calming influence,” adds Associate Professor and EAP/CESL Director Michelle Overholt.
Since moving to Kansas City and studying English at Donnelly, Alvarez has accomplished a lot. During her third level of ESL classes, she became a US citizen; her husband is a legal resident who plans
自己学习ESL课程. After translating at an immigration law firm this summer, Alvarez now juggles an entry-level accounting role at a real estate firm with her course load en route to furthering her career in the US.
“It is a challenge, because everybody there speaks English,” she says. “And the things I already know in Spanish, like accounting, I have to learn in English.”
No matter how much she may struggle to complete courses while balancing a job and raising Camila with her husband, Alverez said she stays strong with the support of her family.
“The most important thing is my family: my daughter, my husband,” she notes. “I want in the future that she can see what I did — how I fight for things that I really want.”
There is no question Alvarez has fought for years to better not only her life, but also those of her husband and daughter. And she credits Donnelly faculty and staff for welcoming her to the College and encouraging her along her journey.
“Donnelly has really nice people,” she says. “我觉得这里就像家人一样. When [faculty] see something strange in you, they ask you. 他们会注意到你的不同. That’s why I like Donnelly: because you feel like they care about you.”
伊莎贝尔·阿尔玛拉兹，12岁
Isabel Almaraz does not hesitate to name what she misses the most about LPL外围网址: its small size and family atmosphere. As only the second person in her family to attend college behind her older brother, she says the supportive environment helped her succeed in the classroom.
来自洛杉矶, Almaraz is a 2012 Donnelly graduate who earned her Associate in Applied Science and now studies at University of Missouri- Kansas City, where she expects to graduate in May of 2016.
“I knew most of the professors [at Donnelly], and I knew most of the students,” she says. “I may not have talked to all of them, but I knew most of them. And it’s a big difference when you go to a bigger school.”
She began classes in the College’s Preparatory Education program, where her instructors encouraged her to live up to her potential.
“他们逼我，”她说. “他们不会放弃. 大多数人都放弃了.... 真是令人印象深刻.”
Although she says she loves UMKC now that she has adjusted to life on a much bigger campus, her transition — made possible through the Henry W. 布洛赫奖学金很有挑战性.
据Almaraz说, large class sizes “made it difficult to adapt,” even though she says her workload is roughly the same as at Donnelly. 转学到UMKC后不久, Almaraz found herself struggling to ask enough questions and failing classes.
Instead of letting adversity drag her down, she used the difficulties as a personal challenge to rise to the occasion and succeed academically like she knew she could.
“I know I can’t afford to fail,” she says. “I was given a scholarship to do better, to strive, to do more. And it kind of hit me: I can’t just sit here and keep taking the same classes over and over.
“I’m going to do what I can to pass these classes. I’m going to ask for all the help I need.”
Help is a common theme in Almaraz’s life. She studies health science at UMKC and plans to attend nursing school after graduating.
“我要把两者结合起来, because with the knowledge that I have from health science combined with the knowledge from nursing, I will be able to help more of the community,她解释道.
Since her family moved to Kansas City when she was 10, Almaraz says she has seen how much the metro has to offer and is eager to contribute her time and talents.
Almaraz, whose parents originally hail from Mexico, says her frequent visits to Mexico City and a service learning trip to Guatemala during her time at Donnelly spurred a desire to give back to the community.
“Any nonprofit volunteering that I can do, I want to do,” she says.
5月毕业时, Almaraz plans to take the summer and fall to volunteer in neighborhoods struggling with childhood obesity and walkability while applying to nursing school — which she hopes to begin in January 2017. While her goals have developed over the years, Almaraz says the foundation of her beliefs and ambitions comes from Donnelly.
“I think Donnelly just made everything kind of smooth for me,” she notes. “Classes were hard when I came here, but it helped me want to keep going. 我想一切都是从这里开始的. 它造就了现在的我.”
pa KWEE
When Paing Kwee and his family arrived in Kansas City from their native Burma, he knew he needed to improve his English.
“I had really bad speaking and understanding skills,” he says.
So when the pastor at his church recommended Donnelly’s English as a Second Language programs in 2013, Kwee登记. Starting at the Community English as a Second Language level, he has progressed greatly in his time so far at the College.
He describes his coursework as “really challenging, but I’m really happy because I have better English than before.”
课外活动, Kwee stays busy taking care of his 3- and 4-year old children while his wife works in packaging and production. 据Kwee说, his children are quickly learning English; he plans to continue growing his English skills so he can give back. “My goal is to help my family and my community,” he explains.
Ultimately, Kwee hopes to own his own business and employ others from his community. With the work he already has done at Donnelly, 他乐观的态度和乐观, Kwee的未来看起来很光明.
Among the faces of Donnelly are Diego Payan, 乔什·林恩·布鲁斯和丹尼尔·泰加特, three of the student panelists from SHINE 2015.
迭戈PAYAN
“Donnelly was one of the only doors that was open for me after I was knocking on
这附近有很多门. LPL外围网址 just showed me that there’s always someone who’s willing to open the door for education for you. 而且我也负担得起.”
JOSH-LYNN布鲁斯
“Donnelly has not only made it possible for me to go to school financially, but I’m the first one in my family to ever really consider school. Where I come from, they really don’t talk about anything past high school. Most of the people in my area don’t even graduate high school.”
丹尼尔咨询意见