The good thing is that I never felt alone,
regardless of whatever obstacle I've had to go through,
any challenge that I came across.
I want to thank my wife.
She's the main support.
It's because of her I think we're --we're here today.
The biggest goals in my life were to graduate high school,
and to come to a university,
and ASU was the first one on my mind
just 'cause it's close to home,
and my grandpa, when we were little
he bought me an ASU sweater and, I just,
I fell in love ever since, and...
He passed away, but I know that he's here with me
every step of the way.
- [Francisco] That's the beautiful thing
about my journey because, it's not on my own.
I didn't achieve it on my own.
I've had a lot of people who had believed
in what I do who had --gave me a lot of support and,
and that's beautiful because I'm not alone here.
- [Aaron] I, I didn't grow up thinking
that I was gonna go to college.
I'm originally from a small town in Mexico,
with not a lot of opportunities as you grow up.
Your future is based on the fields
working at an early age.
And, when I moved into America
that's when the possibility of going to college
was something that could be a potential thing to happen.
- [Desirai] It was not only something for me
but for my parents as well.
I couldn't thank them enough.
I feel like, I just want to give them the world for all
- -everything they did for me.
Not only just with school, but just in general.
I feel like, I can actually say that I have the best
parents.
- Thank you very much. They graduated.
That was my goal in life.
No, thank you.
Thank you.
That's all I wanted was straight A's,
they got me straight A's all the time.
I'm going to retire because they graduated already.
That's good enough.
- My mom, since I was really little,
has always been very big on education.
She's like, that's pretty much the most
important thing you can do.
Nothing can take that away from you.
Like once you have it, it's yours.
As a woman, I think it's so empowering to have an education.
And going to ASU,
they really give you the resources to be a good employee,
to be a good worker, to be someone who is educated,
who knows what they're doing.
- [Francisco] Definitely. I owe a lot to my parents
and, to my country,
because a lot of people in my country have supported me.
Because I'm taking with me, whatever I learn.
So all of the experiences, all of that,
no matter what happens, I'm gonna have them, wherever I go.
- [Raquel] So being here, taking grad pictures,
being on campus with one of my best friends is,
I got emotional watching her take pictures because it's,
it's very real.
We've been working really hard all these years
and we've literally sat by each other the entire time.
So we knew --we knew we were going to get here together.
- [Michaella] Even if I don't end up getting a PhD,
or if my master's doesn't work out how I want it to,
like, I still have this.
And like my mom said, like,
that can never be taken away from you.
That's something that you'll have forever,
and it's something that you earned.
So, just really exciting.
- [Aaron] Yeah. I mean, I failed a couple times,
and I just think that's, that's part of it, part of success.
And, now I know that nothing is impossible.
If you set a goal, set your mind to it,
no matter what, you'll be able to get it.
- Well, I was raised by my grandparents,
and they always encouraged me to do school
and finish high school and go to college.
'Cause I'm a first-generation student
and low-income student.
I feel really overwhelmed and excited and proud of myself.
I would say thank you, because without my grandparents and
without my grandpa and my grandma, I wouldn't be here today.
I had, you know, a difficult life
but they made that into something beautiful.
And I'm just here honoring them,
and accomplishing that, and making them proud every day.