“Job Corps provided what I needed to make it,” Marina Perez said.
After Marina’s mother passed away, she found herself living back home working a dead-end job. She was 23 and knew that, with every passing moment, she was missing her chance to do more with her life. Marina first heard about Job Corps when she was younger but hadn’t given it much thought until she realized that she was an adult without a high school diploma and limited employment options. With just a few months left before she turned 24, Marina knew that now was her time to become a Job Corps student. 
Marina arrived at the Fred G. Acosta Job Corps Center without her diploma and without direction. She set her sights on earning her high school diploma and whatever career path was meant for her after that. It turned out that HVAC proved to be the training area for her as she not only found herself enjoying learning about it, but also thrived in her classes.
Marina quickly became a leader on campus. She was named student of the month many times, was a leader in her training area, regularly gave new and prospective students campus tours, and participated in the campus recreational sports leagues.
Something else that Marina found at Job Corps was a mentor. Mr. John Gallagher saw something in Marina and knew she was bound for success from the beginning. He helped her get into the union, and when her certification card was damaged, he purchased her a new one for her birthday. This deep and lasting impact is why Marina and John are still in contact and keep in touch today.
Marina, who was nominated by John, recently received the Shirley McVay Wiseman Award in February for outstanding work from a young woman in the Home Builders Institute Building Careers program. At the virtual award ceremony, Marina was described as an “innovator, leader, someone who overcame adversity and who not only was active as a student, but active as a leader and mentor for other young women.” Along with the award came a $1,000 check.
Marina encourages anyone interested in Job Corps to enroll and take the opportunity. She raves about her Fred G. Acosta campus and shared how she always “felt safe, was in a clean environment, and the food was delicious!” She acknowledges that when she was younger she did not take the idea of a career and education seriously, but she “realized that, without a diploma and a career, you won’t be fully fulfilled.” Marina has encouraged her family and friends to attend as well and notes that, without the program, she wouldn’t have earned her diploma or found a job or apartment.
In the next 5 years, Marina hopes to go back to school and learn to work on commercial freezers. Her ultimate goal is to one day own her very own HVAC company where she can employ people like herself.
Graduated from Job Corps in: 2106 Employer: Installer and Servicing Renovations HVAC Tucson Hometown: Albuquerque, New Mexico Email: Marinaperezm23@gmail.com Submitted by: Center Submission