An Opportunity: Local family makes TSTC their college choice

BY Amanda Sotelo

For one Rio Hondo family, Texas State Technical College became a family affair when their daughter Logan Cleary enrolled after high school.

Cleary, her mother Sylvia Cleary, her brother John Cleary III and Sylvia’s husband Arturo Marroquin have either graduated or are attending TSTC.

First, there’s 24-year-old Logan, she recently received her associate degree in Biology and is now working toward a bachelor’s degree at a local university as a pre-med student.

The mother of two boys credits TSTC with her recent success and acceptance into the Atlantis Project, a study abroad pre-med fellowship.

“Studying biology at TSTC first was my best decision,” she said. “The instructors have very high expectations of their students. They know each of us personally, we’re not just a number, and they always assure us we can do better. It gave me confidence.”

Cleary will spend three weeks this summer in Athens, Greece shadowing doctors and exploring the healthcare industry.

“I never thought that a girl from the small town of Rio Hondo could get an opportunity like this,” said Cleary. “But this just goes to show it doesn’t matter where you’re from or where you study, if you want something you should go for it. I’m so excited.”

While Cleary made her pre-med dreams come true, her brother John is also working toward his.

John is considered legally blind and is unable to drive. He said he chose TSTC because of its proximity to home and his sister’s good experience at the college.

“My instructors know about my situation, but I love that they treat me like everyone else,” said John. “I know there’s help I can receive, but I want to prove that I can do it by myself and my instructors encourage me to. That’s why I’ve done so well.”

The 21-year-old is working toward an associate degree in Education and Training and currently boasts a perfect 4.0 grade-point average. John said his true passion is poetry and writing and he hopes to someday become a professor in English and creative writing.

John has already proven his talent by becoming a published author with his poem “Memories,” which won a poetry movement contest.

John’s family said it has been TSTC and its instructors that have showed him he has no limits and that he can achieve his career goals.

With two of her children at TSTC and being witness to their success, Sylvia realized she was ready to return to college as well.

Sylvia has worked in the medical field as a Licensed Vocational Nurse for nearly 19 years and said she is ready to move up.

“I’m patiently waiting for the registered nursing program at TSTC to start,” she said. “I don’t want to go anywhere else.”

Like her son, Sylvia has a perfect 4.0 GPA. The 49-year-old is taking academic core and biology classes, but said at her age she never expected to do so well in college.

“I was scared coming back. A lot of the students are so much younger, so I figured so much smarter,” she said. “But like I tell my children, college is what you put into it and I’ve really challenged myself and succeeded.”

As for Sylvia’s husband, Marroquin, he recently graduated as well from Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Technology.

He is a decorated army veteran who earned a purple heart for his service and tour of duty in Iraq. Although he was shot and now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, Sylvia said she is proud of his determination.

“He’s always there encouraging me and striving for the best,” she said. “It was he who encouraged me to come back to school. He told me this was my time.”

The family agrees that TSTC has provided them a great education and the college experience has helped them all grow. . And as for Cleary she said she truly misses the college.

“I wish TSTC offered bachelor degrees,” she said. “I would come back in a heartbeat.”