Choosing to go to college is just the beginning of the journey. The real story is the determination to keep going, even when the path gets tough. Rebecca Yager and Jawain Swint, who both faced difficult first semesters, will share how they pushed forward and grew from those experiences as they prepare to represent the class of 2026 at the upcoming commencement ceremonies.
Hometown: Saginaw, MI
Program of study: Associate in Science – Manufacturing & Industrial Technology and an Advanced Certificate in Computer Aided Design (CAD)
Involvement: Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), FAST, robotics head coach at White Pine Middle School, robotics
mentor at Heritage High School, Student Technical Solution Competition
Awards & Recognitions: Fostering Futures scholarship, Gene Haas Foundation scholarship and the Great Lakes
Bay Manufacturers Association scholarship, President’s List and Dean’s List
Going to college wasn’t an option Rebecca seriously considered until high school robotics and career center instructors helped to point her in that direction. Her first semester at Delta College was the most challenging. Her experience was shaped by several external challenges, including graduating high school in 2020 and starting college at the height of the pandemic, pursuing a degree in a traditionally male-dominated field and navigating it all without a strong support system at home.
“I came to Delta during a pandemic and was in foster care when I was a teenager,” shares Rebecca. “I was taking too many classes at once and I didn’t know what I was doing. I failed my first couple of semesters, but after I found out about the resources that were available, everything was so much easier.”
The resource that provided Rececca with the support she needed was the FAST (Fostering an Academic Successful Transition) program. It provided her with mentorship, community, and connected her with scholarship opportunities and additional support throughout her college journey, even supporting her through her home-buying process.
“The FAST program, which is designed for college kids that were in foster care, helped with resources for housing and for being able to meet other students that were also in foster care and have that community,” shares Rebecca. “I bought my first home a few years ago when I was 22. Being able to have someone there with me and by my side to do that, it felt a lot less scary.”
Rebecca has been a student at Delta for six years, making the thought of graduation bittersweet. Her cap will be topped with a piece she designed and printed herself as a beautiful end to her time here as a student. “Honesty, it sounds bad, but part of me is not looking forward to graduation, because it feels like I’m done here.”
But Rebecca is not done here. After graduation, she plans to continue her work as an engineer at Fullerton Tools but will also be returning to Delta in a part time role helping introduce seniors at Carrollton High School to the world of CAD.
Hometown: Saginaw, MI
Program of study: Associate in Science – Information Technology Support, transferring to Saginaw Valley State University
Involvement: National Cyber League, Prime for Life Instructor, Veteran Services, IT support for
Women of Colors
Awards & Recognitions: Vice President’s List and Dean’s List
After graduating high school in 2005, Jawain did what he was expected to do and enrolled at Delta College. But life had other plans. Not long after his first semester began, Jawain learned he would soon be a father. He shifted his focus to work and his family, ultimately failing three classes and dropping out of college.
As a means of providing stability to his young family, Jawain decided to enlist in the US Army at the age of 21. He was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011 where he served as an M1A1 Abrams tank gunner. After four years in the military, rather than re-enlisting, Jawain enrolled in the automotive technician certificate program at Washburn University in Topeka, KS where he made the President’s List and graduated with honors.
He and his family moved back to Saginaw in 2015, finding work with the City of Saginaw as a mechanic for a time before old military injuries prompted a career change. Jawain switched to retail sales, where he stayed for nine years, working his way up to store manager.
As a father to four boys, Jawain has always been sure to lead by example. “I believe you need to be the change you want to see,” he says. “I have to show them the way because I feel like young men need someone to follow.”
But when he began preaching the importance of earning a degree to his two teenage sons, he realized he was telling them to do something he didn’t do himself. Deciding to return to Delta was the easy part. Not being deterred after learning he was on academic probation from his first semester nearly 20 years earlier was a challenge he faced head on.
After Delta, Jawain plans to transfer to Saginaw Valley State University to earn a bachelor’s degree in computer information systems (CIS) in tandem with his oldest son who is now pursuing his degree at a university in Florida.
