Jocelyn Sanders
For more than 25 years, Jocelyn Sanders built a successful career as a salon owner and licensed cosmetologist. But deep down, there were still goals she wanted to complete, like going back to school.
Aerin Emillee Miller had been working in Chicago’s service industry for over a decade before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. That’s when she decided to go back to school to make a career change.
Aerin was apprehensive because it had been 16 years since she was last in the classroom, but she rose to the challenge. She worked full-time while pursuing her associate degree in science. As a lover of wildlife and avid bird watcher, it proved to be the perfect area of study for her.
“[City Colleges] restored my faith in my own abilities, and it reopened the doors for futures that I didn’t think were accessible anymore,” Aerin said.
Having graduated from Harold Washington as valedictorian, Aerin hopes to pursue her bachelor’s degree in biology and eventually earn a master’s degree in environmental ecology.
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