When it comes to ş¬Đ߲ÝÉçÇř, Taylor Edwards ’23 exemplifies the continuance of a legacy. Taylor, her mom, dad and grandma all graduated from Missouri Western.

Her parents and grandmother all attended Missouri Western at the same time. Her grandmother was a non-traditional student and had moved herself and Taylor’s dad to St. Joseph to study at Missouri Western. Her grandma studied history, her dad music education, and her mom elementary education.

Taylor explained that Missouri Western means tradition to her family. “Having all four of us be Griffons has been pretty special in the sense that I can really bond with my parents over the experiences that they had,” Taylor said. “To always have the connection to my parents in everything that I do is really special. My dad and I will participate in the alumni marching band this upcoming year together, and that will be super awesome and super special.”

Being a legacy student gave Taylor the ability to connect with her parents on a deeper level and use them as a guiding force in her college career. “Being a legacy student, my goal for coming to Missouri Western was really to create my own path,” she explained. “But I was also able to use my parents and their experiences to kind of shape my path.” Taylor wasn’t always convinced that Missouri Western was where she would go. She was hesitant to be a legacy student because she wanted to be sure she could forge her own path without falling into her family’s shadow. Taylor was afraid it would take away from becoming her own independent person.

However, with all the opportunities that Missouri Western had to offer, and the affordability, which allowed her to graduate with minimal debt, she gained so much from carrying on the Missouri Western family legacy. “I think that they knew that I would always come here – I think I knew that I would always come here; I just didn’t want to admit it because I really wanted to be independent and be my own person. But I was independent, and I did my own thing here.”

She came to Missouri Western with dreams of becoming a music teacher, and this past spring, her dreams became reality. Taylor graduated in May 2023 with degrees in instrumental music education and music performance. The moment Taylor stepped into a classroom for the first time not as a student, but as a teacher assistant, she immediately knew she had chosen the right field.

She was teaching her students “how to love music not just play music.” She revealed, “I knew I always wanted to be a teacher. Both my parents are teachers so that’s kind of the world I grew up in.”

On campus, Taylor was heavily involved. True to her passion for music, Taylor was in the Golden Griffon Marching Band, was a drum major her senior year, and was a part of the jazz, wind, and chamber ensembles. Taylor was a member of Sigma Alpha Iota Music Fraternity and the National Association for Music Education Collegiate Chapter. She was also part of the Missouri National Educators Association – Aspiring Educators, serving as the Missouri state president and on the board of directors. Outside of music, she was a student ambassador, Griffon Orientation leader, and a Griffon Experience leader all within The Office of Admissions, and she also worked as a resident assistant in Scanlon and Vartabedian Halls.

When asked what she liked to do outside of her busy school schedule she said, “Not a lot,” and laughed. “Everything I do is fun, so participating in school is always fun for me. It can be stressful, but I’ve always loved school – especially my extracurriculars. I’m always doing something that I love doing and something that is fun for me and passionate for me. So, it doesn’t really seem like the things that I do for school are work; it’s always just been fun. The past four years were so, so awesome.”

Taylor has accepted a position at Leavenworth Intermediate School teaching 5th- and 6th-grade instrumental music and general music. She will also assist with the Leavenworth High School marching band. Taylor hopes to continue doing things she loves to do in new capacities.

“Missouri Western was probably the best choice for me in preparing for my career. They have us in the classroom as early as our sophomore year. So, I was already experiencing what it’s like to be a music teacher in my sophomore year. Then every year after that you have a classroom experience. The applied learning, the hands-on learning, that Missouri Western offers gave me the highest chance at success for being a teacher I think.” She continued, “Besides that, our professors are so awesome in the music department. Just sitting and talking to them, you learn that they are some of the most experienced and the best people on their instruments and just in the field, in the world. Missouri Western was pretty epic for that stuff.”

One professor in particular, Dr. Lee Harrelson, left a lasting impact on Taylor. Dr. Harrelson was her advisor, private instructor, and professor for her ensemble classes. She said he helped her gain experience that would “copy and paste” into her professional life. It was also because of Dr. Harrelson that she joined the Fountain City

Youth Brass Academy which led her to be the United States representative at the World Youth Brass Band in Kerkrade, Netherlands, in the summer of 2022.

Taylor embodies what it means to be your own person and create your own path, while still relying on the legacy of family and their experiences to help guide the way to success. Your donations help students like Taylor carry on a family legacy and forge their own path to a brighter future.

From a young age, Marian’s father instilled in her the importance of college and education. When Missouri Western visited her high school, she saw her dreams just within reach – being the first member of her family to attend college.

Marian’s life is full of firsts. Before she was a first-generation college student, Marian was the first member of her family born in the United States after her parents emigrated from Nicaragua and Honduras. “My mom is from Honduras and my Dad is from Nicaragua. My parents opened a restaurant and grocery store when I was younger, but they did not know much English. As a seven-year-old, I would help translate for them at the various licensing offices, city hall, or other places as needed.” Helping her parents didn’t stop with their first business, though. “Even now, I am always their right-hand person to do anything they need help with. I would learn whatever I could just to help them out.”

From the time she was that seven-year-old little girl helping translate for her parents, her father instilled in her the importance of “going to university.” The degree that she earns will follow her everywhere and allow her to achieve her goals no matter where she travels. Just because the idea of attending college was instilled in her didn’t mean the path was going to be an easy one.

Marian has faced different challenges as a first-generation college student. She didn’t have guidance on how to look for colleges and programs or even how to fill out the FAFSA. College preparation was Marian’s biggest obstacle. Not only did Marian have to learn how to navigate the path to college, but she had to teach her parents along the way, and now she has to help her younger brother navigate his own college path.

Despite the challenges she faced, Marian knows she made the right choice in Missouri Western. After her first visit to the campus, Marian already felt like a member of the Griffon family. “I chose Missouri Western on my first tour. The two group leaders on the tour are what settled it for me. I knew I wanted to come here because it felt like a family.”

When she first began at Missouri Western, Marian was majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology. “One of the requirements was Psychology 101. I had the class with Dr. Kelly Henry who is now my advisor. Instantly, from that class, I picked psychology up as a minor and continued from there,” Marian said. She soon learned psychology was her true passion. “I noticed that I had so much more attention and motivation to do my work with psychology,” she added. After talking with Dr. Henry, she switched her major to psychology and has been in love with it since.

After graduating, Marian’s initial goal is to become a clinical psychologist with the ultimate goal of bringing more psychological and mental health resources and information to Nicaragua. “Teaching those types of things is something I feel is very important. I don’t really think it’s fair sometimes that some people have to come all the way to the U.S. to get those resources if we are able to share that with them,” Marian said. “I want to be able to open my own practice and hopefully continue the path of my grandparents and open a school.” Both her grandfather and father opened schools in Nicaragua.

Marian’s advice to other first-generation students is to not be afraid to ask questions along the way. “It’s difficult to sometimes do it by yourself, but in the end, it’s so worth it. Looking at your parents’ faces, your siblings’ faces, everybody’s faces looking at what you’re doing is going to be so powerful.”

“My parents are my number one motivators. I’m going to college to get that degree and do better for my life and their lives because they’ve done so much.”
Marian is not alone at Missouri Western. There are many students like her – first-generation students trying their hardest to help their families and better their lives. Your donations help Marian and students like her to pursue their dreams of a better future for their families.

I was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. When I was one year old, my parents took me and fled our home country at the onset of a civil war. For the next 17 years, I lived in refugee camps across four countries. I started my life as a refugee in the country of Tanzania, then Zambia and Malawi, finally settling in Mozambique for 14 of the 17 years. During our time as refugees, my family and I suffered many traumas. We went hungry. We had to walk miles for water. Life was difficult. Life was full of impossibilities.

My family finally moved to the United States in 2014, briefly landing in Columbia, Missouri before moving to Kansas City, Missouri. When I first arrived in the United States, I hardly spoke any English. As the oldest of nine children, I did everything I could to learn the English language in order to advocate for my parents and younger siblings. I read and explained mail to my parents and attended all types of appointments to ensure my family understood the information given to them.

This struggle is not unique to my family. The language barrier is a challenge that immigrants to the United States face every day. I have always had the goal of helping others in one way or another, but through my experiences in life, I have discovered that this is an area where I can truly have a positive impact on others. After I graduated from Missouri Western with a degree in political science – international studies, I took a job with the Kansas City Public Schools as a Swahili Family and Community Liaison serving immigrant families in the area. Whether they needed a translator on a phone call with the district or needed assistance registering their children for the first time, I was able to assist many families during my one year in that position.

Now I am serving as a Legal Coordinator for Erickson Immigration Group in Washington, D.C. I am able to advocate for individuals who are in the process of coming to the United States or those who are already here with documentation that is going to expire. For me, there is no better feeling than knowing that someone is in a better place in their life because I helped in some way. I hope to be able to advocate for others on a much larger scale in the future, whether in the State Department, the United Nations, or at a nonprofit.

No matter where I go in life, I believe that Missouri Western has helped set me up for success in many ways. I first visited campus with one of my high school classes. My thoughts quickly changed from the impossible to the possible when I heard the University’s slogan at the time – Everything is Possible. During our tour, we were shown a video featuring the campus and students with the song “Hall of Fame” by The Script in the background. As I watched the students interacting with each other, enjoying their time at college and listened to the lyrics, “you can be the greatest; you can be the best,” it just hit me. I wanted to turn my impossibilities into possibilities, and the only place for me to do that was Missouri Western.

The moment I arrived at Missouri Western as a college student, I knew I wanted to get involved. Throughout my four years at the university I was able to serve as the Student Government Association President, serve on Western Activities Council (WAC), be involved with the Soccer Club and serve as a Griffon Mentor in Admissions. My heavy involvement in so many student organizations helped me obtain the real-world skills that I will take with me the rest of my career and life.

As a student leader, I learned how to communicate with various students and employees across campus, and I came to understand that while everyone has different communication styles, when it comes down to it, we are all human. We can come together regardless of our differences to resolve an issue, to share a wonderful moment. Those are the skills that will help make me successful in life.

I have so much pride in being a Griffon. Being a Griffon means that I am a part of a community that cares about other people. It’s a community made up of people local to St. Joseph, and people from across the world. After we graduate, we still carry that community with us. It creates a mindset that it isn’t just about me. It’s about others, about our community, about expanding generosity to everyone and finding ways to make someone else’s day a little bit better.

I am extremely blessed to have been surrounded by amazing faculty and staff during my time at Missouri Western. I am so grateful for all the help they have given me along the way. To look back at where I started when I first came to Missouri Western as a refugee with minimal English and writing skills, to where I am today as a United States citizen and Missouri Western graduate, there is a huge difference. The faculty and staff at Missouri Western need to know that they impacted my life, and they are impacting the lives of so many other students each and every day, and for that I am grateful.

Since I was a freshman in high school, I’ve wanted to be a social worker. I’ve always had this push to help others, even before my first-hand experience with social workers. Now, after nearly 10 years of pushing myself toward my goals, I am one step closer to becoming a social worker thanks to the scholarships generously provided by the ş¬Đ߲ÝÉçÇř Foundation and funded by donors like you.

When I graduated from high school in 2014, I chose to enroll at Missouri Western to obtain my degree in Social Work. Unfortunately, life presented its challenges, and I had to step away twice after the birth of each of my sons, Kayden and Grayson. Each was born with health issues that required a stay at the NICU – one at KU Medical Center and the other at Children’s Mercy Hospital.

When Kayden was born, he had to stay in the NICU for a month and a half. Thankfully, we were able to stay at the Ronald McDonald House the entire length of his stay. Unfortunately, my need to focus on my family limited my ability to continue pursuing my education.

Fast forward a couple of years, and I decided to return to Missouri Western. Shortly after returning to school, I became pregnant with my second son, Grayson. I had to have an emergency C-section and two blood transfusions. Grayson was born not breathing, but he was quickly revived and transported to Children’s Mercy. Once there, he received cooling therapy to reverse any potential brain damage, and proceeded to stay in the NICU for an additional three weeks.

Throughout both of our stays in the NICU, we were extremely lucky to have amazing social workers that assisted us through the difficult experiences and offered us helpful resources. Receiving the support that these social workers gave us through those difficult times further solidified my goals of becoming a social worker myself, with the ultimate goal of serving in a hospital like KU Medical Center or Children’s Mercy, so I can support other families the way we were supported.

Missouri Western has always been my first choice for my education, from right out of high school all the way up to my final decision to return in the fall of 2020. At the time, I was working 40 hours a week at the St. Joseph Police Department as a records clerk while attending class in person on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In May 2022, I was able to start working for the YWCA as the Law Enforcement Victim Advocate. Each of these steps has led me closer to my ultimate goal of becoming a social worker.

I have had nothing but positive experiences at Missouri Western, and I would not be as close to reaching my goals as I am without the personal help and support I have received from faculty and staff at the University. To me, Missouri Western means acceptance. Missouri Western means that even though I am a non-traditional student, I can have the same experiences and same support as students straight out of high school.

I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to receive that support without the assistance of scholarships funded by generous donors like you. As graduation quickly approaches, I am grateful to say that one thing I won’t have to worry as much about is the financial burden of going to school. These scholarships have had a huge impact on my life, and will continue to have an impact on the lives of students who come after me.