Ryan Morgia

Ryan Morgia moved to the United States from the Philippines with his wife and child in 2019. Before the move, Ryan worked in the oil manufacturing industry as the factory manager of an engineering firm he developed. He was a licensed professional mechanical engineer in his home country and had earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering there.

A few months after Ryan and his family arrived in Chicago, the COVID-19 pandemic began. Ryan became a stay at home dad and tried to develop a business trading stocks, but it did not go as he hoped. While in search of job opportunities, he drove for ride-share companies. He was eager to learn more about the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) trade, so decided to enroll at City Colleges of Chicago.

In August of 2021, Ryan’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer and funds were tight. Ryan’s professors at Kennedy-King College took note of how willing he was to help his classmates, and they suggested he become a paid peer tutor, which he did starting in the fall of 2021.

After earning HVAC certificates in May of 2022, Ryan decided to take the stationary engineers license exam offered by the National Association of Stationary Operating Engineers®. He passed and was able to obtain an HVAC maintenance/stationary engineer position in Colorado in August. Seven months later, Ryan was promoted to chief engineer thanks to his hard work and perseverance.

“My experience at [Kennedy-King College] and the certifications were able to help me bridge my experience from Philippines,” he said.

Ryan is grateful that he is able to build his career again in a new country. He values the education he received at Kennedy-King College and hopes to return one day as an instructor after he gets a few more years of experience in the field.