Success Story: Meet Pedro

A Place Where You Belong
When Pedro Ramirez learned that he would be named valedictorian of his Computer Information Systems program at St. Augustine College (SAC), he was overcome with emotion. A native of Mexico, he moved to Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood when he was 16 and was raising a family when he embarked on his higher education journey. “One of the campuses is close to my house, about 5 minutes away. The classes were also very flexible, which played a significant role in my daily schedule of a full-time job, kids, and family. A traditional university would have been impossible for me,” explains Ramirez. “Because most of the people are Hispanic, I thought that this is the place where I belong. Most of my classmates were also adults who were working, just like me.”