Alyssa started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2023 and earned an AA. She graduated from Helena College in May 2025 and will be transferring to a four-year college to continue studying public health.
“What brought me to Helena College is my motivation to further my education because I’m a First Generation college student, and I just want to change the cycle of bad things that have been happening… I just want to have a good future for myself.”
B started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2023 and earned an AS in Nursing. She graduated from Helena College in May 2025 and will be working for St. Peter’s Health.
“When things did come up, like stressors and things that I felt like maybe I couldn’t get past, it was just taking it one day at a time. For me, it’s just shifting my perspective and my focus and…just realizing that everything’s going to be okay.”
Stacie started as an MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2023 and earned an AS in General Studies. She graduated from Helena College in May 2025 and is deciding between programs in ultrasound or speech pathology.
“I took A&P I and II, and awhile back that would’ve deterred me from some courses because I’ve always heard about how hard it was…and while it was challenging, it was nice to overcome that fear…and not let it be so intimidating.”
Nico started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and earned an AS in general education. He graduated from Helena College in May 2024 and is heading to Southern Oregon University in the fall to study psychology.
“It finally clicked—there’s always a click moment—it finally clicked in my head that if I kept leaning into being miserable as my only personality trait then I wouldn’t be anything other than miserable for the rest of my life…and I genuinely don’t want to be miserable for the rest of my life. I enjoy being happy.”
Maedyn started as a MT-10 Scholar in Fall 2022 and graduated in May 2024 with an AA in general education. She’ll continue at the University of Montana in the fall, where she plans to complete a BA in Social Work and then pursue her law degree. Her starting story was recorded live in our MT-10 First Year Seminar course.
“I wanted to change the set that it had been for our family. I wanted to steer it in a different direction. I’m the first in my family to go to college and the first to graduate with a college degree.”
Meehka started as a MT-10 scholar in Fall 2021 and graduated in December 2023 with an AA in general education. Meehka first shared her story in a public speaking course but chose to reexamine and redraft it as part of an independent study project during her second-to-last semester. The following recording encapsulates her journey and resilience.
“As an adult, I began to call the place that I would disappear to in my imagination, the Land of the Shadows…”
“I am no longer able to hide behind the shadows. Instead, I embrace who I am. There is no more shame in being proud of who I am because finally the hero in my story is me.”
Shaine is a Helena College 2022 graduate and a Montana-10 Scholar.
“I feel like I got pretty lucky… I still look back and think like, I could’ve been in jail, could’ve died, could’ve had a lot different outcome, so I’m really grateful it didn’t go that way, and it actually ended up working out really well for me.”
